Welcome to zorlac’s homepage!

76th Annual Academy Awards Tonight

Well, the 76th Annual Academy Awards are tonight at 8pm Est. / 5pm Pac. on ABC. If you haven’t checked out all the nominees yet for tonight, you can check them out HERE. Being the big Lord of the Rings fan that I am, I am really hoping for Peter Jackson to get the Directing Oscar and Return of the King to get Best Picture, but we are just going to have to wait and see how they have voted. Even if someone doesn’t win an Oscar, they sure get quite the gift bag valued at approx. $100,000. Here’s what they get:

The contents of the priciest Oscar goody bags ever range from jewellery and gadgets – a $6,000 state-of-the-art high definition TV set for example – to personalised indulgences, such as a French perfume bottled in Baccarat crystal emblazoned with the nominee’s moniker.

Star jetsetters will enjoy the many travel freebies, including a California wine country getaway, and roundtrip business-class tickets from LA to New Zealand. Seafaring nominees can set sail on a seven-day all-expense paid cruise to the Caribbean, while a Canadian luxury getaway gift certificate – helicopter excursion and winery tour are among the perks – is also in the pricey stash.

Those who don’t go home with a gong will get the $32,000 consolation prize, the “Everybody Wins At The Oscars” gift bag. It features a Caesar’s Palace penthouse weekend in Las Vegas with use of a VIP cabana and limousine, four tickets to see Celine Dion and $9,000 spending money.

New AVERT Stinger and Google Toolbar

Another update to McAfee’s AVERT Stinger and a new Google Toolbar have been released. Here’s the info:

McAfee AVERT Stinger 2.0.5
This version of Stinger includes detection for all known variants, as of February 27, 2004. Added to this version is W32/Bagle.c@MM.
UPDATE: March 1, 2004 – Version 2.0.7 Released – Added W32/Bagle.e@MM
– Download McAfee AVERT Stinger 2.0.7.

Google Toolbar 2.0.108
Search Google from this toolbar as well as block popups, autofill forms and more.
– Download Google Toolbar 2.0.108.

Aerosmith Honkin’ on Bobo Sound Clips

On March 30, Aerosmith will release Honkin’ On Bobo – a blues album including covers of songs by Muddy Waters, Fisher/ Hopkins and Blind Willie McTell among others.

The complete tracklisting is: ‘Road Runner’, ‘Shame, Shame, Shame’, ‘Eyesight To The Blind’, ‘Baby, Please Don’t Go’, ‘Never Loved A Girl’, ‘Back Back Train’, ‘You Gotta Move’, ‘The Grind’, ‘I’m Ready’, ‘Temperature’, ‘Stop Messin’ Around’ and ‘Jesus Is On The Main Line’.

Click HERE to listen to 30 second samples of each of the 12 songs thanks to Aero Force One.

Doom 3 Xbox Pics

Game Pro has begun the hype for the April 15th (according to GameSpot) release of Doom 3, by uploading the first image from the Xbox port of the game. You can check out the image HERE with more images promised tomorrow.

Unreal Tournament 2004 Ahead of Schedule?

Beyond Unreal mentioned today that Unreal Tournament 2004 looks to be ahead of schedule. Here’s what they said:

Last night The Screensavers held a televised Unreal Tournament 2004 LAN Party. In attendance was a representative from Atari who was reported to have stated that “Unreal Tournament 2004 was ahead of schedule and would probably go gold very soon”. Possibly as early as the end of this month or the start of March. I was able to confirm this only with a few sources.

As always, the final word only comes from Epic Games when the master disc goes out the front door. Take it for what you will, but it is good news indeed to know that the game getting closer!

There are some new screenshots from the game that you can check out HERE and HERE.

Windows XP Reloaded

Paul Thurrott’s WinInfo is reporting there will be an interim update to Windows XP before Longhorn ships. Here’s the scoop:

Despite Microsoft’s repeated denials, the company will indeed release an interim version of Windows XP that will bridge the gap between the initial XP release and Windows Longhorn, which is currently due in late 2005 at the earliest. The interim XP version will ship as a new retail product that replaces existing retail boxed copies of XP and as a set of updates, called XP Reloaded, that existing XP users can install separately. According to sources I contacted this morning, XP Reloaded will include all the features from XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), which is due by midyear, as well as a host of other unique features, including Windows Media Player (WMP) 10.

Other details about XP Reloaded are unknown at this time, although the update kit apparently will include a Web-based installer application that will let users choose optional features. Reports about an XP Version 2 release first cropped up more than a year ago, but Microsoft officials repeatedly denied that the company planned to issue such a release. In early 2004, when the company revealed the new security features that XP SP2 will include, the rumors resurfaced. But the XP Reloaded OS refresh will clearly include a lot more than security updates, possibly in a bid to revive consumer excitement about XP while Microsoft preps the ever-delayed Longhorn release.

Velvet Revolver – Contraband Tracklisting

The final tracklisting for Velvet Revolver’s debut album ‘Contraband’ due May 18th has been posted on Velvet-Revolver.com. I had hoped to see their cover of Pink Floyd’s ‘Money’ on the CD instead of ‘Set Me Free’ from The Hulk soundtrack since ‘Money’ wasn’t even on The Italian Job’s soundtrack. In alphabetical order they are:

‘Big Machine’, ‘Do It For The Kids’, ‘Headspace’, ‘Falling To Pieces’, ‘Illegal Eye’, ‘Loving The Alien (Sometimes)’, ‘Set Me Free’, ‘Slither’, ‘Spectacle’, ‘Suckertrain Blues’ ‘Superhuman’ and ‘You Got No Right’.

The Punisher Soundtrack

The final tracklisting has been posted for The Punisher: The Album which is going to hit stores on March 23rd. Here’s the list:

1. Drowning Pool – Step Up
2. Edgewater – Eyes Wired Shut
3. Seether feat. Amy Lee – Broken
4. Puddle of Mudd – Bleed
5. Nickelback – Slow Motion
6. Queens of the Stone Age – Never Say Never
7. Smile Empty Soul – Finding Myself
8. Trapt – Lost in a Portrait
9. Chavelle – Still Running
10. Damageplan feat. Jerry Cantrell – Ashes
11. Seether – Sold Me
12. Finger Eleven – Slow Chemical
13. Ben Moody feat. Jason Miller & Jason “Gong” Jones – The End Has Come
14. Strata – Piece By Piece
15. Hatebreed – Bound To Violence
16. Seven Wiser – Sick
17. Submersed – Complicated
18. Atomship – Time for People
19. Mark Collie – In Time