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Tonight, The World Ends

OK, maybe not, but here's some year-end doom for you.

You just know Mr. Burke's got his fingers crossed tonight.
You just know Mr. Burke's got his fingers crossed tonight.
I don't know about you, but I spend New Year's Eve 1999 sitting quietly at home, in bed, with plenty of loaded guns at the ready just in case the world ended. Sadly, things went on as usual and I wasn't able to run through the streets in some sort of Mad Maxian post-apocalypse in a quest for gas. But maybe 2009 will be my year!

Here are a couple of things in motion right now that, while not at all related to games, give me hope for the end of the world.

- Earlier this morning, 30GB versions of Microsoft's Zune all decided to reboot and freeze up on the reboot screen, rendering them all completely useless. Microsoft's Xbox Man, Major "Larry Hyrb" Nelson has twittered a bit on the subject, and he claims that the Zune team is on the case. I, however, am with Destructoid's Jim Sterling on this one. It's hilarious. I'd ask you all to check your Zune to see if it still works, but... does anyone actually own a Zune?

- The television apocalypse may be at hand, and I'm not talking about the SAG strike vote. Time Warner Cable and Viacom are beefing over how much money Viacom gets paid to let Time Warner broadcast their channels. And Time Warner claims that if it caves to Viacom's demands, other networks will put some squeeze onto all TV providers, resulting in a $30/month jump in cable bills. So if you have Time Warner, you might wake up tomorrow unable to see Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, and so on. This one has a loose video game tie-in, as it all leads back to Sumner Redstone's holding company, National Amusements, which is attempting to restructure its debt. That's the same Sumner Redstone that used to own most of Midway.

- As of midnight tonight, it will be illegal to send text messages while driving a car in California. What is this, RUSSIA? I look forward to watching people exploit the system by saying "I wasn't texting, I was looking for a new song to play on my music-capable phone" and watching courts explode with the ensuing nonsense. If you want to keep people focused on the road, just pass a law that bars all distractions instead of just lashing out at one specific piece of technology. Dopes.
Jeff Gerstmann on Google+

94 Comments

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MikeHawk

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Edited By MikeHawk

in soviet russia, car texts while driving YOU!

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cspiffo

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Edited By cspiffo

Yes Jeff.  Plenty of people own the far superior Zune.

LOL, I love my Zune but this is just so hillarious!  To all who don't know already.  Just let your Zune's battery run down and at 7 am eastern plug it into your PC let it charge and it will work.  It turns out that their is a bios clock bug in the first gen Zunes which don't read Leap Years correctly so the last day of the year (day 366) does not jive with the hardware.  When I first noticed the bug I was pissed but now I'm just chuckling a little inside...LOL!!!!

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Fade2Gray

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Edited By Fade2Gray

"If you want to keep people focused on the road, just pass a law that bars all distractions instead of just lashing out at one specific piece of technology. Dopes"

That ALREADY exists in California, which makes this all the more ridiculous and hilarious. It's the unsafe driving law.

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ManMadeGod

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Edited By ManMadeGod

My 30GB Zune is dead but I also have a 120GB one (which still works) and it's leagues better than the iPod. Dam, I'm already going off topic.
Here's to another great year on GiantBomb!

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Paradigmer

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Edited By Paradigmer

don't worry Jeff there is always 2012. Then you'll have the post apocoliptic world Santa didn't bring you!

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Geno

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Edited By Geno

In Soviet Russia, you don't celebrate the New Year, the New Year celebrates you!

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Aaron_G

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Edited By Aaron_G

If the world ends tonight, I won't feel it. 

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Captain_Fookup

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Edited By Captain_Fookup

Fuck, can't celebrate working tomorrow..... oh well hookers and blow next New Years perhaps?

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citizenkane

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Edited By citizenkane

Happy New Years!  w00t!

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FluffyNutSatchel

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Edited By FluffyNutSatchel

I have a 80gb zune...

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Claude

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Edited By Claude

East Coast Good, no known losses. Goodluck World.

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deactivated-5d61ff6f14b61

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I proudly own a 80GB Zune, which works just fine thank you. Jeff, don't you know that iPods are for sissy bitches?

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TheGamerGeek

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Edited By TheGamerGeek
BiffMcBlumpkin said:
"Jeff said:
"- As of midnight tonight, it will be illegal to send text messages while driving a car in California. What is this, RUSSIA?."
No, in Russia you can't drive a car while in California."
Greatest. Biff saying. Ever.
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Torrim

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Edited By Torrim

So what's a working Zune do that a broken one doesn't?

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joey

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Edited By joey

OK GUYS DONT WORRY, WE'RE STILL ALIVE

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Green_Incarnate

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Edited By Green_Incarnate

I just got the achievement party like it's 1999 for Gears 2 today. The world will surely end this day.

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derevo

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Edited By derevo

I have a 30gb zune, I've had it since launch and I love it. So when I tried to turn it on yesterday morning and it froze, it was pretty frustrating. Even more frustrating when I started getting calls from friends who had the same problem. Then even more frustrating, but eventually amusing when I saw the THOUSANDS of forum post all within the same hour or two on the zune forums about it happening to every zune owner around the world.

It's fixed now, by they way. It just had something to do with the internal clock and it being leap year, and the earth's electro-magnetic field or something like that.

Also, I think your waiting for December, 2012 Jeff.

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killawogg

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Edited By killawogg

man kansas dont seem that bad now with that texting law.... i feel like to many ppl are just throwing their rights away......besides man the world is suppose to end finally in 2012...... pfft yeah right come on ppl 3 things that will end the world, and astroid impact, the sun burns out, and people being the sick animals that they are will drive them self into exstinction.

some how i dont think mother nature will be the demise of the world we are stupid enough to end it for her.

HAPPY NEW YEAR GIANT BOMB AND COMMUNITY
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jangofett88

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Edited By jangofett88

Jeff! Where the hell is the mushroom cloud you promised!?!?!?!

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deactivated-597fb42f4841d

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These television execs must be clueless arrogant bastards if they think people are gonna pay an extra $30 a month on cable television. Do people actually watch TV anymore? Last I checked it was an outdated medium with nothing good on it, with the few gems popping up online.

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darthzew

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Edited By darthzew

I own a Zune.

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Damotello

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Edited By Damotello

A fallout joke! I get fallout jokes!

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RipTheVeins

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Edited By RipTheVeins

actually me and all of my friends own a 80g Zune...I think we might be the sole supporters.

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Rowr

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Edited By Rowr
With you
With you
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Will1Lucky

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Edited By Will1Lucky

Hmm dont suppose there are any intact vaults anywhere around America are there :P.

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Afroman269

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Edited By Afroman269

we're still here jeff, sorry

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JamesM

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Edited By JamesM

If I remember correctly, sending text messages while driving is similarly dangerous to being drunk. While driving, that is. Not just being drunk on a chair in a room or something.

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Jensonb

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Edited By Jensonb

Hmm, I seem to recall some popular channel or other went dark on Time Warner's cable systems before...ABQ or something...Owned by some massive entertainment company or other...Eisney or soemthing liek that.

It didn't end well.

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Media_Master

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Edited By Media_Master

2009 is HERE!!!

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dtran1212

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Edited By dtran1212

i get cable for free, so F  time warner

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govermentcheese

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Edited By govermentcheese

When society crashes govermentcheese will be one of the bigest bartering things you have. And i have a mountain of it. You all take care..Matter of fact my pile of govermentcheese keeps getting snow across the top.

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Willy105

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Edited By Willy105

My Zune still works!

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Willy105

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Edited By Willy105

My Zune still works!

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giyanks22

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Edited By giyanks22

Russia...lol
 Happy new year giantbomb.

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SpikeDelight

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Edited By SpikeDelight

What? Who text messages while in their car? That's ridonkulous in the first place!

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tebbit

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Edited By tebbit

Well, that's two people who own Zunes. TWO OF THE SAME PEOPLE :o

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Cubical

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Edited By Cubical

I Hate Jim Sterling and I make it apoint to never agree with him on anything. But I will agree with Jeff and anybody else on giantbomb..  It is hilarious that they  embedded a 2009 version of the w2k bug on there zunes.

this is an evil microsoft plot or there spy they highered to implant the y2k bug in the year 2000 is really lazy possibly stoned drug addict alcoholic that just got around to it.

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littledude

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Edited By littledude

Interesting. I do like your piece on the lashing out on one piece of technology part. I agree totally, maybe law-makers just want something to do so that's why they don't ban all distractions.

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CreamyGoodness

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Edited By CreamyGoodness

i own a zune

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micguel

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Edited By micguel

IIT BOILS DOWN TO CORPORATE TAKE OVER
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Urmean

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I'm preparing my weapons for the communistic apocalypse.

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penguindust

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Edited By penguindust

I wouldn't worry too much about the Time Warner/Viacom thing.  I have the Dish Network and we get those types of threats at least once a year as the two sides arbitrate new contracts.  You may lose the networks for a week but they aren't going away permanently.  Hollywood/Wall Street types just have to flex their penises before signing on the dotted line.
 
The Zune thing is funny though.  How'd that happen?  Something in the software that caused them all to fritz?  Another reason (and I hate saying it but...) to stick with the Ipod.
 
EDIT: I just noticed this was an 8 month old thread!  Ha-ha, should have paid closer attention to Jeff's rant.

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EvilTwin

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Edited By EvilTwin

This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a BUMP!