I wanted to watch this sitcom, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. It's a Netflix exclusive. So I went to Netflix and tried to watch it. But instead I got an error message saying my browser didn't support Microsoft Silverlight. Microsoft deprecated their Silverlight plugin a couple of years ago. Who still uses Silverlight? I didn't think anyone did. But Netflix still does. How much did I really want to see this show? Enough to figure out how to install a plugin that's been deprecated? I didn't want it that much. So I gave up for a year.
I wanted to watch this sitcom, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. It's a Netflix exclusive. But Netflix released season 1 on a couple DVDs. Maybe for folks who didn't want to get Silverlight running but who still had DVD drives? So a few weeks back, I checked out season 1 from the library. I watched disc 1! It was pretty good. Then I tried to watch disc 2, but just got an error message. The DVD had been made by Sony. Sometimes publishers do crazy stuff with their content. Instead of publishing it in a straightforward manner, they try to control it. Sony was known for breaking stuff in bass-ackwards attempts to control what they publish. So I gave up again. Maybe I could research around and find out how Sony had broken this disc. But how much trouble were these videos worth? (Heck if I knew; I couldn't see 'em.)
I wanted to watch this sitcom, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. It's a Netflix exclusive. When I donate blood, the blood donation folks have tablets on which you can watch movies. Historically, I've ignored the tablet. Why pass up a chance for uninterrupted reading? But BUT this last time I checked and: those tablets are hooked up to Netflix. Does Netflix donate service to the blood banks? Maybe? So the last time I donated blood, I watched a couple of episodes from disc 2. Over the next few months, I hope to watch the rest.
So it all worked out. Maybe someday the Netflix folks will develop a format that works on some device I own so I can pay them for it. But meanwhile, I'm happy to pay in blood.
