Mike Thomason wrote:there's only about two and half thousand discs all up
Most impressive!
I have little doubt that I've
bought that many DVDs or more since the format debuted (which of course means your
true purchase numbers are probably even higher!
), but there's no way I could ever keep that many on hand at my age. My permanent collection stands around 1200-ish now,
not including a few hundred unwatched HK titles that may or may not be kept. My hat's off to you, though, even more so if you're able to revisit all of them before you shuffle off this mortal coil. Now
that would eat up some time!
One funny thing about this collector mentality we all share is that there are people out
there far worse than any of us
here. Some home theatre forums have threads where people post pictures of their collections and I cringe to see entire living rooms or rec rooms (not tidy, semi-private
dens, mind you, but actual family rooms where you might conceivably entertain
guests) plastered with wall-to-wall DVDs and all the various toys and "premiums" and dorky little statues and action figures that come with them. And these are collections numbering anywhere from 3000 to 5000 or more. When a collection gets that big a person can't possibly have enough time to watch even half of them a second time through. Some folks say that they might pull down a particular disc only to watch a key scene that they love, and to that I say . . .search for it on YouTube, it's probably there.
As someone who sells off lesser discs and $3.00 blind buys on a regular basis, the internet is virtually the
last place I go to do it. I say "virtually" only because if an OOP disc is guaranteed a hefty return, then I'll list it on eBay, which does indeed take a few minutes per listing or, better yet, Amazon Marketplace, which takes no time at all and is absolutely free (recent biggie; the original Image release of DUCK SOUP. Bought for $6.99; sold for $75.00). A trip to the post office is a mere blip out of an admittedly busy schedule.
So in fairness, it's not the internet per se, it's how efficiently one can make use of it. When I read about people selling off huge chunks of their collections
one disc at a time and getting maybe a dollar or two plus shipping for each one (if that!), I have to wonder if it's really worth it. At returns like that, it seems more fiscally sensible just to unload 'em in bulk.
Better than the 'net, used book/CD/DVD stores here in town pay a fair price for a wide range of domestic and foreign DVDs. I won't get rich, but I won't have more movies sitting in my home than there are possibly hours left in my lifetime to revisit them all. Plus, visits to these stores are often done with my girlfriend (I can't say "family" 'cause technically she's not) during a day out. I stick maybe 15 or 20 discs in my backpack (which I always have with me anyways) and when we're in the neighbourhood of one of these places--presto!--a handful of cash and my movies pass on to someone else who will enjoy them. Multitasking, of a sort.
For you American folks, there's always places like DVD Planet's Quote Machine, Wherehouse.com, SecondSpin.com and New Town Video. Again, a few minutes on the internet, a few more to dump some old discs in a box, a few more at the post office, and there's credit or money in your account. Can't speak for other parts of the world, though. Maybe??
(As for trading, I don't know about others, but the only thing I trade is Hong Kong stuff, for more Hong Kong stuff, because I need to get ahold of more films. And I only do that with people here, and only in large batches (PM's welcome). As for everything else, Mike's right. Time is too precious.) Mike Thomason wrote:and c) who watches VHS in the age of DVD and Bluray?
There's one final option that I can't recommend strongly enough, and I
passionately wish more people would consider it (and I realize this might seem like it would take too long for someone in Mike's shoes, for example, but I have doubts because it's so easy to do). Most public libraries (here, at least) STILL sign out VHS tapes to users, alongside the expected DVDs. I've also seen VHS tapes in libraries in Michigan, so that's two countries, unofficially. I'll admit I'm presuming that libraries in a city as big as Perth might--
might--do the same. It may or may not surprise, but
many people still watch VHS from their local libraries, especially in bigger cities with newer populations of lower-income immigrants of overseas students, who don't care about or can't afford plasma screens and Blu-Ray players when an old tube TV and a cheap VCR will suffice.
I say this having just visited my local library branch today for some materials and noticed a substantial couple of aisles lined with an
incredibly diverse selection of VHS tapes and, better still,
people actually perusing them and signing them out. Knowing your tastes from your shopping lists here, Mike, I think I can safely assume that some pieces of your collection, not unlike my own and those of a few other users here, may not be considered "appropriate" for your local library
, but surely there must be
some titles that deserve a better home than the local garbage dump or recycling facility? The handful of times I've done it, both here in Toronto and in my old home town, dropping off a couple of boxes of tapes/discs has
never taken much time out of my day, and knowing that parts of my collection are still making people happy, and at no cost to them, makes me happy too. I hope all of you might consider this if you've got stuff to unload. We can't assume no one uses an old format just because we don't; exactly the opposite is often true.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
PS: Now that I own a decent sized HDTV -- those Joy Sales Fortune Star (non-remastered) titles don't hold up too well, do they? At 106cm they look only a whisker above bad bootlegs...
I have to agree with you that those FS non-remastered titles don't look so hot on these flashy new screens (though I find them passable most of the time), but how old do you think we'll be before we see versions that look any better?
When it comes to Hong Kong cinema, I'll compromise because I know we're never,
ever going to see HD-quality re-releases of many of our favourite old Hong Kong movies, let alone properly remastered and anamorphic standard DVD versions, and some of the HK Blus I've seen so far (thankfully belonging to other people) are very hit and miss. It's a shame, really, but then again, if we waited for proper remasters (which too many of these films
so deserve, dammit), or were forced to pay Blu-Ray prices were they to start appearing on that format, a lot of us wouldn't see very many Hong Kong movies at all.
17 "Lucia di Lammermoor" 12 "Don Carlos/Don Carlo", 10 or of each of Mozarts big hits "Don Giovanni", "Nozze di Figaro", "Cosi fan Tutti", "Magic Flute". Shelves full of Wagner, bunches of Rossini, a ton of "I Capuleti e i Montecchi" (Bellini)...etc. etc. 
The very unique charms of the films themselves will never dull, even if the treatment of them on home media has virtually never been better than average.
Coincidence! Even more of a coincidence as we were talking at work about me sharing the same birthday as Mel Blanc just this week 
