Pakistan Telecommunication Authority told the country’s 70 Internet service providers Friday that the popular Web site would be blocked until further notice.

The authority did not specify what the offensive material was, but a PTA official said the ban concerned a movie trailer for an upcoming film by Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who has said he plans to release an anti-Quran movie portraying the religion as fascist and prone to inciting violence against women and homosexuals.

The PTA official, who asked not to be identified because he was not an official spokesman, said the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority also blocks Web sites that show controversial drawings of the Prophet Muhammad. The drawings were originally printed in European newspapers in 2006 and were reprinted by some papers last week.

The PTA urged Web users to write to YouTube and request the removal of the objectionable movies, saying authorities would stop blocking the site once that happened.

Pakistan is not the only country to have blocked access to YouTube.

In January, a court in Turkey blocked the site because some video clips allegedly insulted the country’s founding father, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. It is illegal to insult Ataturk in Turkey.

Last spring the Thai government banned the site for about four months because of clips seen as offensive to Thailand’s revered monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

Moroccans last year were unable to access YouTube after users posted videos critical of Morocco’s treatment of the people of Western Sahara, a territory Morocco took control of in 1975.

Wii Fit was released in Japan on December 1, 2007, and has already sold 1.1 million copies which is a good achievement considering the criticism it has received. It has been labeled ‘pointless’ and ‘ a waste of money’ but those 1.1 million Japanese believe that it will be beneficial to their health.

I encourage you to reply and tell me what you think of it.

We currently don’t know how much it will cost when it’s released but I will be sure to post it as soon as the information is available.

I’ll start with FIFA. This year, the major difference has been the addition of various tricks that can be done by holding LT (Xbox 360) or L2 (PS3). This can be a lot of fun and is great for embarrassing your friends. Sadly this can only be done on Next-Gen consoles. For other systems such as PS2 and PC it is very similar to FIFA 07, which disappointed many fans of the series who had not invested in a Next-Gen console.

Next up is Pro Evo. This has been labeled the game for hardcore fans of the sport because of its fun factor. It is much more fast paces and has an arcade feel to it. The main update for this year’s game is Teamvision™. It means that the opposition will automatically adapt to your playing style forcing you to vary your moves. You are now also able to call up taller players for set pieces which encourages more strategic gameplay.

Now For the comparisons:

1. Realism: Pro Evo puts up a good fight with its improved graphics and slick interface, however, FIFA wins here thanks to it’s licenses and overall more professional look.

2. Sound: Many argue that the Pro Evo soundtrack is dreadful… and they are right.

3. ‘Career Mode’: Some say that Pro Evo’s ‘Master League’ is poor in comparison to FIFA’s more official leagues but I think differently. Besides, Pro Evo gives you the option to play in a domestic league as well as the ‘Master League’.

4. Gameplay: Konami’s eavy hitter has always had the better gameplay in my opinion. FIFA’s is good, but not as fun as Pro Evo’s. FIFA just isn’t as fun, and fun is the whole point of playing games.

5. Overall Impression: Overall, Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer wins this round with EA’s FIFA a close second.

For all the changes in the music industry, today’s artists usually enter a studio with a mind-set little changed from 50 years ago: They hope to produce a static song. A recording might end up in millions of MP3 players, but it always sounds the same.

Now a start-up in Paris called Musinaut claims to have a fresh way of doing things with a format called MXP4. The format allows for a song to be recorded and played back in many different ways, and for extras such as notes, videos and lyrics to be included in the file, as well. Think of it as MP3 on steroids.

The bad: Expensive; inaccurate primary color of green; no user-menu fine color temperature controls.

The bottom line: The Pioneer PDP-5080HD produces the deepest shade of black–and thus one of the best pictures–we’ve ever tested.

Specs: Product type: Plasma TV; Diagonal size: 50 in; Resolution: 1365 x 768

Read the full article here.

“The first is the size of the screen. If you’re watching football you can’t see the ball. If it’s boxing, you don’t know who is hitting who.”

The group’s proposition is a chunky pair of futuristic-looking glasses that connect to the phone, which when worn by a viewer give the impression of watching a 30-inch (76-centimetre) television at a distance of two metres.

Read the full article here.

Read the full article here.

Read teh full article here.