July 28, 2002
We've added a new section to Venice Central.  This is our Venice Talk forum, which was created by Randy Chase with minimal guidance from myself.  We intend this forum to be a place where fellow fans of Venice from around the world, and members of the band, can share.  Share show reviews, Venice stories and opinions, and much more.  You can discuss a movie you just saw, an album you just heard, even post your favorite recipe!  Any random subject you feel like talking about is not only allowed, it's encouraged!

For our Dutch fans, we've built a Dutch area which contains all of the same topical categories as the English-language area.

Some of you may be used to participating on the Yahoogroups Community Mailing List.  We do not intend for this forum to replace that list.  Lists have their purpose and their fans.  They do, however, have some disadvantages, and do not work for everyone.  What follows is a list of the differences between an online forum and an email listserver.

1. On Venice Talk, all discussion topics are organized by category, and neatly arranged, with each topic followed by all its replies.  This makes it very easy for you to read the topics that interest you and skip the ones that don't.  We have one forum for just show reviews.  Another just to talk about the new album.  Email lists flood everyone with ALL the topics on ALL of the subjects, which for many leads to some frustration because of the number of mails that they have little interest in.  Some people use threaded email programs, but even then, conversations will not always follow thread titles.

2. Email comes when *it* wants to.  You're pretty much at the mercy of your mail service, and the ebb and flow of the list members' verbosity.  Venice Talk is there for when *you* want it.  Have a question or some free time?  Go to the forum.  Too busy?  Don't.  You won't get the constant mails flooding in.  The forum is there when you want it to be.

3. On Venice Talk, off-topic discussions take place in designated off-topic areas.  Conversing on a variety of interesting subjects is a normal occurance when a group of people gather to talk, but it can be frustrating to those who aren't interested in the current topic, especially when the signal/noise ratio becomes way too great, or when you're busy and another mail about an election, politics, or the Super Bowl comes into your inbox.  In a forum, we separate the off-topic and encourage people to post there.  You can engage in off-topic discussions or not.  And you aren't bothering the people who are only interested in Venice content, if you do so.

4. On Venice Talk, you can ignore users.  Is there a member whose posts really annoy you?  Put them on your ignore list, and their contributions will never appear visible to you again.

5. Venice Talk has moderators who have the responsibility of keeping threads on topic, moving incorrectly placed threads, and handling posts that violate forum policy.  We can also make sure users follow forum guidelines.  No more spam.  We will not allow flame wars.  Yes, email list servers have moderators too, but they're less effective because once mail has been sent, it cannot be edited or deleted.

6. With email, if you make a really embarassing typo, send off a scathing reply that you instantly regret, accidently address your love letter or bootleg request to the entire list, or just make a technical error, there's no way to fix it.  On Venice Talk, you can delete or edit your own post at any time.

7. Venice Talk contains a database of answers.  As the threads and posts accumulate, we will have a valuable database.  Unless you save all your mail, most mail just pops into your mailbox and then it's deleted (or else you have a huge inbox!).  Here, the data will all stay on our server permanently.  We can even make certain threads stick to the top so that they're very noticeable.  With email, if a thread doesn't interest you, it gets deleted.  Later on, perhaps you'll find you need the same question answered, so you ask the question again.  On a forum, the answers are all there.  You can even search for the answers if it's been asked before, or find all the postings on a certain topic by searching for a keyword.  Yes, Yahoogroups keeps a complete archive of all posts, but they're organized numerically, and not by threaded subject, and with well over 18,000 entries to sort through without any keyword search function, good luck finding what you're looking for.

8. Venice Talk features email notification.  Want to know when something occurs or when someone answers any thread?  No problem.  Just subscribe and the forum will email you.  Handy if you are interested in only one or two things.

9. Venice Talk allows you the option of temporary or part time use.  You can come on to the forum for answers without subscribing to anything.  You won't get a lot of mails per day when you only had one question, as you would on an email list.  You can register and ask your question, and subscribe to your own thread, then go away and wait for the replies.  Much more convenient.  However, you're certainly not discouraged from staying on the forum all day long with a browser window open.  :)

10. Venice Talk contains polls.  Anyone can set up polls in the forum to ask questions and see the results of the voting.

11. On Venice Talk, no "Out of Office" automatic replies!

12. The spreading of internet worms and virus by email is not an issue on Venice Talk.

13. On Venice Talk, you can choose to post with your e-mail address hidden.  This function tends to encourage greater participation from band members.

14. Venice Talk allows linking to images.  You can link to pictures that are hosted on the internet to your posts.  You can link to smilies or whatever helps.

15. Venice Talk allows you to use HTML and other formatting code, without regard for the email browser.  You can add real smilies, make your letters red or bold or whatever.  There is code for quoting and more.  Learning to use the code is simple and there are online aids in every post you make.

On the flipside, the two main advantages to the Community Mailing List are convenience and immediacy.  All posts come to you instead of you having to go to it.  And posts that you need to see right away, like "Switch on your radio, Venice is being interviewed right now!" are better conveyed through an e-mail system than through a board that you might not check until it's several days too late.

Venice Talk is new and a work in progress.  We will see what forums and organization we need.  We can change, add or subtract any forums we want.  Feel free to make recommendations to us on the forum!

Mostly, we want to personally thank those that contribute to Venice Talk with questions and answers.  It is the main point of the forum, and we appreciate everyone's involvement!

And now, without further ado...  Venice Talk.

(After you've registered, and then confirmed your registration via e-mail, be sure and check out the "Forum Feedback" section for some instructions on some of the page's tricks!)


July 27, 2002
Here's the CD artwork for the new single:

July 24, 2002
Dolf van Stijgeren would like everyone to know that his website, Venice Station, has been updated with new pictures from Venice's recent show at Patronaat, Haarlem.  You can check that out over here.


July 23, 2002
Just added an audio clip of Kipp, Mark, Michael and Pat Lennon singing backup on an album track from Gary Stiers.  That's over here, just underneath the John Vester samples.  Thanks to Mike Pasqua for providing the CD!


July 18, 2002
This same webpage has added this morning's acoustic performances of "Blue Paint," "Sweet Aloha" and "Most of Us."  All the recordings posted there are incredible quality, and they're the full songs, and they represent about half of the upcoming album.  But I have to stress that they are not the new album.  These were all recorded and mixed live and in real time, when the band was tired and not at their peak, with equipment that is not studio quality, and without a producer enhancing the sound.  None of these tracks come close to the album versions, where it took over a month to perfect every little detail.  So please remember that these files are a preview of the main attraction, and not a replacement for it.


July 17, 2002
The webpage I linked to on Monday has been updated with more live radio performances of the new Venice songs "Tides," "Think Again" and "Most of Us," along with an interview with Kipp and Michael.  Once again, that page (not a part of Venice Central) is here.


July 15, 2002
If you missed Venice on National Radio 1 this morning, here's your chance to hear three songs from the new album, "Father Time," "Not Myself" (with new lyrics!) and the title track, "Welcome To the Rest of Your Life."  You can download these live radio performances over here, underneath pictures of Saturday night's show at the Podium Hardenberg.


July 13, 2002
I got a couple more radio appearances.  I've incorporated them into yesterday's entry so that the timeline doesn't go back and forth.


July 12, 2002
I've been getting some info about upcoming Venice radio appearances for next week in Holland, through the Yahoogroups list and also from private e-mails.  Since I'm not in Holland, I can't confirm any of them.  But I can pass along the rumors, with no guarantee that they're right, and we can all hope for the best.  All of these radio stations stream over the internet, so you don't have to be in Holland to listen in.

Monday, July 15, sometime between 1:00pm and 2:00pm (that's 4:00am to 5:00am Pacific Standard Time, for the Los Angeles fans), the single will be played on Radio 3.  You can listen by going here and clicking on the "On/Off" switch in the left corner.

Also on Monday, July 15, Venice will be guests on Radio Tour De France on National Radio 1, hosted by Twee Metre Sessies' Jan Dowe Kroeske.  The rumor is that they'll perform four live acoustic songs, at 2:30pm, 3:30pm, 4:30pm and 5:30pm.  (Which is 5:30am, 6:30am, 7:30am and 8:30am PST.)  Odds are they'll play the new single, "Think Again," sometime in there as well, along with intermittent interviews.  Webpage is here.  To listen, find where it says "Luister Radio 1 Live," and select either "Real" (for Real Audio) or "WMP" (for Windows Media Player).

Wednesday, July 17, Venice will perform live on Radio 3, at the same time the single was first played there on Monday, between 1:00pm and 2:00pm (4:00am to 5:00am PST).

Thursday, July 18, they'll be on the “Evers Staat Op” show with DJ Edwin Evers, on Radio 538, between 6:00am and 9:00am.  (That's between 9:00pm and midnight Wednesday night, PST.)  Apparently at the Podium show, Herman Potgieter anounced that this appearance will take place at around 8:15am (which is 11:15pm Wednesday night PST).  That webpage is here.  If you have Windows Media Player installed, here's a video stream, and here's an audio stream.  (The video is cool, but your sound quality will be much better if you go with audio only.  Run a test right now and listen for yourself.)

When I hear of more, I'll post 'em.


July 11, 2002
Venice's new album, "Welcome To the Rest of Your Life," will be released in Holland and Belgium on September 2nd.  The first single is "Think Again," which is currently going out to radio stations in those countries, and will hit stores on August 5th.  When I get word on release dates in other countries, I will of course post them immediately.


July 7, 2002
Hey, so Venice Central turns four years old today.  But enough about me.  What's new with you?