KAO again. It's been a while. I've been asked (nicely) to promote a music project of a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend, so here goes:

Best of Music

It's a list of music videos from what I gathered. Some good songs. Many I've never heard of. But I haven't had time to check carefully. Hope you enjoy! :)

Today, I almost signed up for BuySellAds. On the paper, it looks good: you get a flat rate that you choose yourself (or calculated by a program, I'm not sure, it wasn't clearly stated) on a monthly ad placement. Then publishers may decide to work with you or not. The bottom line is that it's not pay-per-click, like Google AdSense, and that alones makes it very unique and interesting.

But it comes with strings attached — one of them is more like a rope, the type used for hanging people; at least that's how I felt. The first isn't really surprising: BuySellAds take a 25% chunk of your earnings. That's a lot, especially if you just scrape by, but some may think it's worthwhile considering you get paid in full.

Now what I didn't like at all and decisively turned me off, is what you won't find in their pricing page but in the fine print of their terms of service, squeezed in a tiny four-row high window:

Funding Your Account:

You may fund your account in two ways: (1) you can deposit funds into your account via a credit card, wire transfer, or PayPal ("Deposited Funds"); and (2) you can earn funds by selling ads as a publisher ("Earned Funds"). Deposited Funds will appear in your Account balance and be available for you to purchase ads; however, Deposited Funds may not be cashed out. Earned Funds will generally appear in your Account balance approximately seventy-two (72) hours after one of your ads has been purchased, and Earned Funds may be cashed out upon your request per the instructions given elsewhere on the Site. Please note that if your Account is inactive for a six-month period (i.e. you have not signed into your Account, you have not added more Deposited Funds, you have not purchased any ads, or you have not received any Earned Funds during that time), then we may deem your Account inactive and at such time we will charge an inactive account fee to preserve your data in the amount of $100.00 per month against your Account balance and will continue to be charged each month until your balance reaches $0 or until your Account becomes active again. If your Account is inactive for a twelve-month period, your Account balance will be charged as an inactive fee. BSA may, but has no obligation to, give you prior notice of the imposition of any inactive fee.

Let me rephrase in plain words:

- if you don't log in to your account for 6 months, you will be charged $100 every month until it reaches 0.

- if you don't log in to your account for 12 months, all your funds are taken as an "inactive fee".

- and they won't tell you a think about it.

This is plain thievery. Imagine if banks did the same, or any place where you deposit money. "We haven't seen you in months, so we took all your money away. You didn't show up, that's your fault!" It reminds me of Ciao.fr, who had the same policy. I found out too late and they took all the money I had earned by writing articles for them, about 50 I think, away from me. After that I was locked out from my account and it was deleted so I could not even claim authorship! One of the biggest con jobs I've ever seen online and they're still free to operate. All their leadership should be in jail.

Anyway, back to BuySellAds. It might be profitable for people with large websites who generate large revenues fast but if you don't make much, be careful, you might lose it all. So think twice before signing up with BuySellAds! Google at least don't screw you up like that (at least not that I know).

That's right, I am. I will try to write more.

At the moment I'm exploring the cruel and deceptive world of web advertisement. This is a topic that's worth blogging about, for sure. I'll get back to that later. How are you doing? And more importantly, is anyone reading this at all? Yeah, I didn't think so. We'll try to change that too.

KAO, over and out. 

I created (really fast) a page for Nintendo's incoming console, the Wii U. Maybe it will grow and eventually turn into a website of sorts. For now it just a very bland page with the list of the release dates for the Japanese games. I did the translation myself from the official source so it should be reliable. It's in French but easy to figure out and I might add English text later.

Here goes: Wii U dates

The funny part is that I don't plan to buy the Wii U (unless I suddenly get loads of money). So it's not a fan project, but part of a bigger plan.

Vincent (1982)

Frankenweenie (1984)

I'm different from the other children.
I'm a bit lonely, but I imagine things which are so real to me —

Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)

 
 
 
I like to have fun, too.
I will always be a kid at heart —

Beetlejuice (1988)

 
 
 
I'm not afraid of the dark. This is where my weird friends live; they brighten up my life —

Batman (1989)

 
 
 
Don't go thinking I'm meek though, I can take on huge challenges and deliver in a truly heroic fashion —

Edward Scissorhands (1990)

 
 
 
Yet, deep down, I feel I'm still this strange and lonely creature looking for emotional bonds —

Batman Returns (1992)

 
 
 
But you need me again. And so I come save the day with might and grandeur —

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

 
 
 
Oh, why am I growing so weary?
There's something missing in my life. I work hard to forget but the feeling keeps coming back —

Conversations with Vincent (1994)

Ed Wood (1994)

I turn to my idols for advice and helping keep the creative flame alive —

Mars Attacks (1996)

 
 
 
But something is still missing;
Anger is growing.
I hate this superficial world, I don't understand people, I wish I could destroy them all! —

 
Oh,
I'm losing my head.
Not everyone is horrible.

Sleepy Hollow (1999)

 
 
 
I would just dispose of a few individuals in some particularly gruesome ways, while staying classy, naturally —

Planet of the Apes (2001)

 
 
 
But it's not happening. I'm surrounded by apes. I need to get away, to get back where it all started.
Wait! Who is that? Could it be... —

Big Fish (2003)

Yes, it is her, finally, the love of my life!
I live in a dream. Now I feel complete —

Corpse Bride (2005)

 
 
 
 
We won't really get married, but it will be as if we were —

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

 
 
 
And then we'll have children. I might make a quirky dad, but I think we'll enjoy life together, I have so much to offer.
Did I put on a little weight? —

Sweeney Todd (2007)

 
 
People are not taking me seriously anymore since I'm a family man. This is vexing me very much. Did they forget how frightful I can be? I will show them! —

Alice in Wonderland (2010)

 
 
 
This was maybe too much. I shall return to more peaceful imaginary kingdoms. I'm still the same kid as I was when I started. I know it, I just need to find myself again. —

Dark Shadows (2012)

 
 
 
 
I am still longing for the dark and the company of my monstruous friends.
My other family —

Frankenweenie (2012)

 
 
 
 
And then I will take the trip down memory lane and return to my roots.

A few notes on this imaginary autobiography

The idea for it came while listening to the fantastic Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack, by Danny Elfman and various contributing artists. For some reason, this year, I've been listening to it over and over. I don't remember doing that in years. Anyway, while listening, it came to me how closely The Nightmare Before Christmas and Tim Burton's movies in general seemed to mirror aspects of him and of his life. I can't believe no one noticed that before (well, maybe someone did!). The child-like innocence of his early movies in the 80s, the depth and maturity of the 90s, that came with a growing discomfort that turned into weariness in the early 2000s, until he met who we can assume is his true love, Helena Bonham-Carter. Then, there was a change of style during the 2000s as he became a father, the tone became lighter or extreme (to me, his weakest decade) and now maybe, he will go back, or at least try to go back, to a more refined style, with less gratuitous violence and CGI, and better scripts. At least I hope so.

I have seen every single one of these movies except, of course, the two that hasn't been released yet, Conversations with Vincent, which is extremely rare as far as I know (the photograph of Vincent Price is not from the movie itself; I couldn't find one), and Big Fish. I've owned Big Fish DVD for years but never got around to watching it for some strange and very mysterious reason which eludes my grasp. I also decided to leave some titles out, such as Stainboy, which in my opinion were of lesser importance.

Just for the record, if I had to rank Tim Burton's movies, from my most to less favorite, it would look something like this: Vincent, Batman Returns, Beetlejuice, Batman, Ed Wood, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Mars Attacks, Sleepy Hollow, Edward Scissorhands, Frankenweenie, Corpse Bride, Planet of the Apes, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Alice in Wonderland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Sweeney Todd, which is the only movie of his that I somewhat disliked. And I must add that the first picture from Dark Shadows had me excited about a Tim Burton's movie like I hadn't been in a loooong while! (since Mars Attacks and Sleepy Hollow?)

And yes, I know Tim Burton didn't direct The Nightmare Before Christmas, but the story is his and I believe it's such a personal one, that it has to be part of his imaginary autobiography.

I wish I had had more time to write each of the little comments and that my English was more natural or poetic, but in the end I think the result is pretty okay. I might update some parts later if I get inspired. And, who knows, maybe this will find its way to Tim Burton himself, so that he could tell us how far or close to the truth I have been!

Thanks for reading.