From: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org (precious-things-digest) To: precious-things-digest@smoe.org Subject: precious-things-digest V7 #213 Reply-To: precious-things@smoe.org Sender: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk X-To-Unsubscribe: Send mail to "precious-things-digest-request@smoe.org" X-To-Unsubscribe: with "unsubscribe" as the body. precious-things-digest Tuesday, September 17 2002 Volume 07 : Number 213 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: Some Yummy CONFIRMED Dates ~ [Richard Handal ] Re: pre-sale seats [Richard Handal ] RAINN [Cyndi S Crawford ] Re: pre-sale seats (& some covert ticket tactics) [mysterilady2001@cs.com] Re: pre-sale seats [acopperbeechDryad ] Re: RAINN [acopperbeechDryad ] Re: pre-sale seats [Brian K Tanaka ] Re: pre-sale seats (& some covert ticket tactics) [Brian K Tanaka ] tori/wallingford sale date pushed back [guapo stick ] tori in the times [guapo stick ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 04:03:09 -0400 (EDT) From: Richard Handal Subject: Re: Some Yummy CONFIRMED Dates ~ Cyndi said: > hey now, Richard, if you're the one who maintains that site, you > can't forget him kissing her on the cheek after she sang "Time" last > year!! you absolutely cannot! If I had a QuickTime file or MPEG of that one I would be happy to! It's really just something I threw together some months back to demonstrate something to someone. The only consistently kept public site I have is the one for Pat Kochie's dolls: . She doesn't send many new photos for it so it's low maintenance. :-) Be seeing you, Richard Handal, H.G. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 03:54:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Richard Handal Subject: Re: pre-sale seats Abb said: > Am I the only one whose seats were horrible? I bought the "best > available" pre-sale seats for the first DC show last year and then when > I got there, discovered that my seats totally sucked. [ . . . ] > Any thoughts? Yes. Always have a seating chart at the ready when you're going to need to make a decision whether or not to buy tickets. There are online seating charts for almost every venue, now. Study them in advance and have some basic idea what a good row designation looks like, etc., have the chart either printed out or, if you're seeing what's available online, keep it open in another window if you can. If you don't know what ticket you're buying you can't make an informed decision. Better tickets were later released for those Constitution Hall concerts. If the ones you were initially presented with totally sucked then you may well have been able to do better by checking back again later--hours, days, weeks, whatever. Life gives no guarantees, and ticket purchases give fewer than life's average. You may *not* have been presented with better seats later. By doing the work of checking and rechecking, if it's important to you to have swell seats, you raise your odds of doing well. I was going to head west for some concerts in 1996. I called Vancouver TicketMaster on July 4 to see about a ticket for the Vancouver concert of July 19. I got row four on the center aisle. A ticket had been released, probably one that had been held for press or something. This was luck on my part, but making the phone call was making my own "luck." If you want to buy something to fall back on you'll need to be prepared to face the possibility that you'll be unable to sell your "back-up" ticket if faced with a better one. You'll need to make a decision whether the better seat is worth it to you if that happens. I've given away many tickets in my day, and sold some for under face value, usually, to someone who's most grateful. It's good karma to give away tickets. Better to give them and they be used, than to walk in with them in your pocket where they *can't* be used. Of course, once inside, it's possible to see someone with a REALLY bad seat and give them your better seat that's not as good as your own. People with bad seats love unexpected free upgrades. :-) (Although sometimes they think you're trying to scam them and they refuse the free ticket! Their loss.) Be seeing you, Richard Handal, H.G. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 05:19:16 -0400 From: Cyndi S Crawford Subject: RAINN I was watching my Sessions @ 54 tape of Tori's performance (thank you Vicki, thank you, thank you!), and while she was speaking about what RAINN is, I reached over and turned my computer--which I'd just turned off two minutes ago--back on, and went to the RAINN website and signed up to try to help raise money, and to try to help my local rape center. I also asked for a few brochures and wallet card thingies to pass around.. Being that I don't drive around Atlanta very well at ALL, I'm a teensy bit worried that I mighta gotten myself (at least a little bit) into something I shouldn't have. Can anybody else who's teamed up to help contribute to RAINN like I just did, explain what exactly you do, if you can?? I'd appreciate it. I'll try as much as I can to do what I can if it's difficult to do and I'll be damned and damned again if I chicken out of this! Thanks for any help you guys can give me.. Sincerely, Cyndi S. Crawford http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/368/ciara_blaze.html -- http://learntothink0.tripod.com/learntothinkagain/ -- http://www.geocities.com/keyyooo/ -- http://www.platinumcomplication.com/cyndi/ -- http://www.cafepress.com/cp/store/store.aspx?storeid=kittitude Tori Amos' response when asked to describe herself in five words: "I. Do. Not. Describe. Myself." ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 07:42:07 -0400 From: mysterilady2001@cs.com Subject: Re: pre-sale seats (& some covert ticket tactics) Hi ya EWF ~ Did I miss something? Are we definitely having pre-sale passwords again this tour? In all reasoning, as I see it, it really didn't work last year. Many MANY complaints were sent to Ticketmaster, who then, I was told, passed them on to whoever was responsible for the whole mess. The sales were often was ill-timed, information inaccurate and as many complained - the whole system unfair. Now, I'm all for the real fans to get the op to buy seats early but we KNOW that ticket agents - with their high speed DSL connections - obtained the password(s) as well as they were shared all over the web. Those ticket agents are a crafty bunch - they have high speed internet connections, are already registered at Ticketmaster and know venues/seating charts like the back of their hand. It's not to say that some EWF did not do well, I nabbed excellent seats for some shows, as many did. But still many did not. It's largely catch as catch can I suppose. However, whether or not there is a pre-sale for us EWF the following tactics should be helpful. 1. Pre-register at Ticketmaster. That way you won't waste valuable time filling in credit card details, address, all that stuff. Make sure you TEST their system to see that it is working for you. A big plus is that it gives you a way to practice & familiarises you with the choices you need to make. You can do that by going through the motions of buying tickets to another concert or event. If its all working for you it will go fast & smooth, with all your details filled in & seats ready to nab with a single click of a button. Once tested then you just hit cancel - or choose find other seats - and poof, just like that the transaction will be over/cancelled. (People please make sure you hit cancel & NOT confirm. I don't want any whining when you accidently buy seats to Avril Lavigne or some obscure touring company of My Fair Lady.) 2. Find a clear seating chart of the venue. The Dent usually has a seating chart link with the other show info on the tour venue page. In my experience sometimes the seating chart listed on the dent is the best available and sometimes it's not. If you cannot see the info clearly then search the net to see if a better one exists. I highly suggest you print out the seating chart. Leaving it as a link you have to bring up means you could lose valuable time as you bring up the chart or switch back and forth between screens. Maybe tape the chart where it's easily readable/accessible. (My practice is to tape it, all four corners of it, to something sturdy and prop it up in close view so my hands never need to leave the keyboard on ticket day. I hate it when the corners curl, it's always when you most need to see whats behind the curl that it happens.) Study the seating chart so you know where sections are in relationship to the stage, how rows are organized & how seat numbering works for that venue. Clue: Check the seating chart carefully to see how seats in the venue are numbered. If you can't see the numbers then go look for another chart &/or call the venue itself. In many venues odd numbers are on one side of the venue, even's on the other. So in these venues if you are offered seats 8 & 10 or 1, 3, 5 & 7 you'll know the seats ARE together. In other venues the numbers are sequential with seat one being next to seat two, etc. Check where numbers begin in rows as well. Row 1, seat 1 might indeed be center stage or it may be to the far left or right. Also pay close attention to the row & seat letter/numbers in the PIT area as these are frequently folding chairs and not actual permanent seats built in to the venue. Row A is likely to be a permanent row but there may actually be rows closer to the stage. For example: Nadyne told us last year of her experience with some seats given to her by RAINN. When she picked them up at the box office outside the venue she was disappointed because they were in row X or some! thing, wh ich she thought, understandably, was at the rear of the floor seating. As she happily found out her seats were right there next to the stage. So study your seating charts kiddies and some of you may get seats like Nadyne's. (I hope you don't mind me using your experience here, as I recall it, Nadyne.) 3. Close all other programs running on your computer. I cannot emphasize this enough. Your computer will run faster & smoother if it's concentrating on the one task at hand - getting you the best seats possible - So close everything except Ticketmaster or whatever online service needed to obtain the tix. This includes IM's. Tell your buddies you'll get back to them as soon as you have obtained your tickets. There is a code to turn off IM's on AOL. I don't know it any longer as I've not been on AOL in ages, but I'm sure someone here knows it. Those off AOL can simply not log on to AIM. Those with extra slow computers might want to consider emptying their cache & defragging the day before as this should help to speed up your computer. I hope this info helps someone. I'm fairly sure the US & UK Ticketmaster sites work the same. Since I moved here 3 months ago we've only bought tickets to KORN through Ticketmaster.co.uk but it was as smooth as the US site. As always please DO come tell us of your seat aquisitions. Best of luck to everyone as the tix frenzy aproaches. Time for lunch Toodles ~ MysT *** ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 09:14:39 -0400 From: acopperbeechDryad Subject: Re: pre-sale seats Abbuford@aol.com wrote: > > Am I the only one whose seats were horrible? i was extremely pleased with the pre-sale seats for all the shows i purchased. i would definitely queue up for the pre-sale again. hope you can get better ones this time!! - -- ~ kelley "Who could ever say you're not simply wonderful?" ~ t. amos _____________________ The Saferoom Project http://www.saferoom.org/ the leafpile http://www.theleafpile.net ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 09:20:55 -0400 From: acopperbeechDryad Subject: Re: RAINN Cyndi S Crawford wrote: > > into something I shouldn't have. Can anybody else who's teamed up to help > contribute to RAINN like I just did, explain what exactly you do, if you > can?? I'd appreciate it. if it's any help, they are generally so swamped it takes them a long time to reply to things--even requests to volunteer. if you've just requested materials to distribute, find some good places in your community to leave them. even places like coffee shops, and more "social" less "clinical" spots are good. i am assuming that your local rape center would train you in working with ppl who may come in, but it is more likely to just be office relief that they need. if nothing else, call around to centers and ask what they need. it's excellent that you want to volunteer. there aren't enough ppl involved in the survivor community, and frankly, there aren't enough places to *be* involved... be well! - -- ~ kelley "Who could ever say you're not simply wonderful?" ~ t. amos _____________________ The Saferoom Project http://www.saferoom.org/ the leafpile http://www.theleafpile.net ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 12:02:01 -0700 From: Brian K Tanaka Subject: Re: pre-sale seats Richard Handal typed the following words: ... > I was going to head west for some concerts in 1996. I called Vancouver > TicketMaster on July 4 to see about a ticket for the Vancouver concert of > July 19. I got row four on the center aisle. A ticket had been released, > probably one that had been held for press or something. This was luck on > my part, but making the phone call was making my own "luck." ... This is much like what happened to me for the San Diego shows last year. I discovered fairly soon before the showdate that I'd be able to make it to San Diego due to a change in circumstance. On a lark, I tried getting tickets for the early show hoping to catch a pair of late-release tickets. To my pleasant surprise I got 'em and while they weren't row four, they were sub-20th row and I was *not* complaining! The next day I realized I was a dope for not trying the late show too. I felt like I was really pushing my luck -- the odds were really against me now after all -- but I tried and sure enough I got another good pair of tickets. A little further back this time, but not by much and the sightline was actually better. So... what Richard said. :-) - -- - -- -bt - -- ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 12:12:01 -0700 From: Brian K Tanaka Subject: Re: pre-sale seats (& some covert ticket tactics) mysterilady2001@cs.com typed the following words: > > Hi ya EWF ~ > > Did I miss something? Are we definitely having pre-sale passwords > again this tour? ... No, you didn't miss anything. As far as I know (for whatever that's worth) there has been no indication that there will be pre-sale passwords. Nor has there been indication to the contrary. If I'm wrong, I'm sure someone will correct me. In any case, thanks for the ticket acquisition tips (which I have omitted here for brevity's sake)! - -- - -- -bt - -- ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 17:21:22 -0400 From: mysterilady2001@cs.com Subject: Re: pre-sale seats (& some covert ticket tactics) Hi again EWF ~ My apologies for the repeat posting... I forgot something I think is pretty important. In my experience you are more likely to get better seats if you request 1 or 2 tickets at the most. Requesting the max allowed, 6 seats, even in the first minutes after going on sale, may put you - for example - in loge or nose bleed balcony as the best seats available, while requesting 2 may put you in 7th row floor seats. However, requesting one may, just may, put you 2nd row left center. I've seen it happen :-) It's simple logistics. Good luck EWF Toodles ~ MysT *** ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 18:52:17 -0700 From: guapo stick Subject: ticketmaster update... ...more like downdates actually. ticketmaster has removed both the columbus (nov. 23) and chicago (nov. 27) listings from their database . chicagoi had been removed last week while columbus just disappeared today. i have no idea why either listing was removed. while it could mean a venue change or something else logistic along those lines, i'd guess the most likely reason is that the shows were added to their database earlier than they should have been. woj ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 19:00:04 -0700 From: guapo stick Subject: tori/wallingford sale date pushed back per this forum thread, , the sale date for the oakdale theater show in wallingford has been pushed back to september 28 (one week later than the original sale date of september 21). woj ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 23:17:26 -0700 From: guapo stick Subject: tori in the times Epic Records Takes Steps to Seal Its Newest Music By CHRIS NELSON The Epic Records Group, a unit of Sony Music, is approaching the sticky problem of prerelease music's being traded online with an even stickier solution. Writers receiving review copies of two soon-to-be-released albums  Tori Amos's "Scarlet's Walk" and Pearl Jam's "Riot Act"  are finding the CD's already inside Sony Walkman players that have been glued shut. Headphones are also glued into the players, to prevent connecting the Walkman to a recording device. By locking up the discs, Epic hopes to keep writers from converting the music to MP3's that can then be traded over the Net. But even a "glueman" player is unlikely to deter a diehard critic. "I'm a pretty big Pearl Jam fan," said Bart Blasengame, a staff writer at Details magazine who was sent one of the contraptions with "Riot Act" inside. "I brought this discman home with me, and I found a way you could go in the back of the CD and, like, pop it open. So I got the actual disc out." Mr. Blasengame said he had no intention of making MP3's . "At the same time, if I want to give it a proper review, I'm going to listen to it how I want to listen to it  and in my stereo is where it sounds best," he said. For several years, prerelease music has turned up online before it reaches stores, distributed without permission by journalists, radio employees, record company employees or other sources. This July, for example, a six-song sampler from Ms. Amos's upcoming album was shipped to writers the old-fashioned way. The songs soon appeared on file-sharing services like WinMX. The Recording Industry Association of America blames Internet music-sharing for declines in CD sales, though proponents of MP3 trading dispute the group's arguments. A Sony spokeswoman confirmed that the glued players were being used to combat piracy, but would not talk about their effectiveness or responses from writers. This is not the first time prerelease music has received the glue treatment. Gil Kaufman, a freelance journalist in Cincinnati, said he owns a prerelease copy of Radiohead's 1997 album "OK Computer" that is glued into an Aiwa player  an Aiwa analog cassette deck. That makes MP3 conversions a bit more difficult. ------------------------------ End of precious-things-digest V7 #213 *************************************