Polyphon

Polyphon is a disc-playing music box, a mechanical device first manufactured by the Polyphon Musikwerke, located in Leipzig, Germany. Invented in 1870, full-scale production started around 1897 and continued into the early 1900s. Polyphons were exported all over world and music was supplied for the English, French and German markets, as well as further afield, with music cataloged for the Russian, Polish and Balkan regions. Polyphon is also a record label as registered by German Polyphon Musikwerke AG in 1908. Polyphon traded under the Polydor label since 1913 with their trademarks Polyphon Musik and Polyphon Record.
Polyphon Musikwerke.
The German company was founded in Wahren, Leipzig, as Firma Brachhausen & Riesener by Gustav Adolf Brachhausen and Ernst Paul Riessner in 1887 for manufacturing their new in 1870 invented mechanical disc-playing music box Polyphon.
The company was renamed to Polyphon-Musikwerke AG in 1895. Since 1908 Hugo Wünsch was director, but became head of the new subsidiary Deutsche Grammophon AG in 1918.
Polyphon-Musikwerke AG acquired 24 April 1917 the record plant Deutsche Grammophon-Aktiengesellschaft from the German government. The German state was taken over DG and British holdings as enemies property during World War I. The factories Deutsche Grammophon and Polyphon-Musikwerke were handled by Polyphonwerke AG and headquarter was relocated in Berlin. The company was called Polyphon-Grammophon-Konzern.
In 1918 Polyphon AG established their head offices in Markgrafenstraße 76 in Berlin. Bruno Borchard became director general. The early owner Joseph Berliner remained as member of the boards until his retirement in 1921. In 1919 the Austrian subsidiary Polyphon-Sprechmaschinen und Schallplatten GmbH was founded in Vienna. It was as renamed Polyphon Schallplatten Ges. mbH. The Danish Nordisk Polyphon A. S. was founded in Kopenhagen. In Stockholm the Swedish subsidiary was called Nordisk Polyphon A. B.
The ownership of foreign activities were concentrated in March 1929 into a Swiss holding company the Polyphon-Holding AG. In 1932 this holding was renamed to Polydor Holding AG.
The owner Polyphon Werke AG was merged with Deutsche Grammophon AG in 1932. Soon was the total shutdown of the production in Leipzig. In 1933 DG sold their shares of Polydor Holding. In 1937 DG was renamed to Deutsche Grammophon GmbH. A capital merger operation took place by a consortium of Deutsche Bank and Telefunken Gesellschaft. In 1932 founded Telefunken Platte GmbH got a production plant as it was needed. DGG was sold to the German Siemens & Halske AG electronics company in 1941. In 1954 DGG established a subsidiary in London, Polydor Records Ltd.
In 2000 the French mediacompany Vivendi SA acquired the current owner Universal Music Group from Seagram.
Polyphon music box.
Original examples still exist of 1870-invented Polyphon and contemporary manufacturers produce small quantities of both the devices and discs.
Making music.
The tune is punched out on the disc with pitch determined by the position of the punching. In the manufacturing process, the punched metal was curled back onto the underside of the disc, creating a raised projection that resembles a letter P when viewed obliquely. When the Polyphon operates, the resulting disc projections, called plectra, engage with a series of ratchet-like star wheels, each with 9 projections, that sit in a gantry. Each star wheel, when moved through 40 degrees on its axis, plucks a tooth on the instrument's comb. The tooth resonates, sounding a predetermined note.
Upon the musical comb, the fast treble notes are sounded furthest from the centre and the slower base notes nearest the centre. Many comb variants were manufactured, including a single comb on smaller instruments, and duplex combs (simultaneous strike) on mid-sized examples of 11-inch-diameter and 15.5-inch-diameter instruments. Most larger twin-combed examples had alternate strike although other manufacturers, notably Symphonion, produced large size instruments with duplex combs.
Motor.
Almost without exception, all Polyphons are powered by a hand-wound clockwork motor. Polyphon may have devised an electric motor variant of a large coin-operated model in the latter days of production, but to date, no known original examples exist. The motor has an output drive dog, which is a circular component with round-topped dowels arrange to fit the holes in the discs. Discs of small diameter have two centrally located holes (centre drive), while larger discs had a series of holes around the periphery (peripheral drive).
During operation, a disc is placed on the centre post, or centre boss, a pressure bar goes over the disc to hold it in place and the drive dog revolves the disc. The playing time for each disc varies, dependent upon the diameter. For example, the running time of a 19.5/8 inch-diameter disc (50 cm) is about 1 minute and 50 seconds.
Modern availability.
Numerous sizes of Polyphons and associated discs were produced, with the diameters ranging from 6 inches to 24.5 inches. It is possible to purchase new discs, currently manufactured in the UK by Renaissance Disc’s, for every size of Polyphon originally produced. Originals have survived in relatively large numbers, and are often available on internet sales sites.
Polyphon Musik.
Polyphon disc records and machines followed in Germany 1905 and in England in June 1908. The trade mark was registered in Britain in 1900. Earlier Polyphon overstamped their place of origin.
Polyphon as a label was founded in Leipzig on 8 September 1908 (registered Nr. 110347). In England their Klingsor Records label were repressed under Polyphon around 1910. In June 1913 the label was changed to Pilot.
Polydor label was founded 2 April 1913 in Leipzig and registered on 25 July 1914 (Nr. 316613).
For example, Polyphon Musikwerke entered into Persian market in 1927. In 1927 Polyphon Musikwerke recorded 200 matrices in Iraq followed by making 600 recordings in Tehran. Their agent the Hakkak company opened shops in Baghdad, Tehran and Kermanshah.
Polyphon Musik and Polyphon Record had unique issue series in 36 countries or areas within decades.
In 1931 agreement with Polyphon gave for Decca exclusive British licence to records on this label.
Since 1946 Polydor has been the popular music arm, while the new Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft label was going to be a classical music label in 1949. The previous used label Grammophon was disbanded.


Magpul PDR

The Magpul PDR (Personal Defense Rifle) is a prototype bullpup-style 5.56×45mm NATO carbine unveiled by Magpul Industries in 2006. Although halted in development as of 2011 it has garnered some attention, largely due to its "futuristic" appearance. The system consists of a gas-operated bullpup carbine intended to replace some submachine guns, M9 pistols and M4 carbines while still offering the rapid fire and range of a M4 carbine in an ultra compact firearm.
The PDR is one of the few personal defense weapons designed to use a standard caliber to simplify the logistics. The method of operation is a short stroke gas piston. It is striker-fired, features an ambidextrous ejection system, and ambidextrous controls.
The PDR-C (Compact) features an FN P90-style pistol grip and ergonomics offering a more compact weapon, while the PDR-D (Direct) uses a more conventional pistol grip with vertical grip (similar to a Steyr TMP) and safety nub to keep users from injuring themselves.


Draaiorgel de Vijf Beelden

Draaiorgel de Vijf Beelden (en: "Dutch street organ of the Five Figures"), or De Vijf Beeldenkast (en: "The Five Figures Cabinet") was a Dutch street organ with 52 keys.
Course of life.
Originally, the organ was built as Gasparini organ and possibly rebuilt at Limonaire. It came in 1910 with the "Gebroeders" [The Brothers] in the . The organ had five figures: one conductor, two calling (nl: "slaande") ladies and two rigid (not moving) ladies in dance posture.
The first years of its existence, the organ has had some tenants, such as "De Kraai", "De Manke", and "Willem Renz". Then the organ is sold to "Holvoet" which sends it in 1926 to Carl Frei in Breda, to let it grow. With this renovation, the organ gets another front, the five figures disappear, but retains its Gavioli mechanics.
A few years later "Henk Möhlmann" from Amsterdam bought organ. He places two Gasparin side pictures and a Limonaire middle picture the organ. For the side panels, it uses two female figures of the Organ Valhalla. Now the organ was again literally become "De Vijf Beelden" [The Five Pictures], as the name was in the beginning. After that the organ has walked for many years in Amsterdam and Rotterdam.
In the 70s, the organ was bought by in Drunen, Rosmalen [an automobile museum in the Netherlands]. This beautiful organ was already little more about. Most of the pipes (including the drone of Carl Frei) were removed and most of the books remained with the old owner behind. After Autotron was closed, the organ was sold. Where the organ hangs out these days, is not entirely known.


MAS-36 rifle

The MAS Modèle 36 (also known as the "Fusil à répétition 7 mm 5 M. 36") is a military bolt-action rifle. First adopted in 1936 by France and intended to replace the Berthier and Lebel series of service rifles, it saw service long past the World War II period. It was manufactured from late 1937 onward by Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS), one of several government-owned arms factories in France. Only 250,000 MAS-36 rifles were available to equip the French infantry during the Battle of France in 1940. Mass production finally caught up after World War II and MAS-36 rifles became widely used in service during the First Indochina War, the Algerian War and the Suez Crisis. Altogether, about 1.1 million MAS-36 rifles had been manufactured when production ceased in 1952.
Description.
The MAS-36 is a short carbine-style rifle with a two-piece stock and slab-sided receiver. It is chambered for the modern rimless 7.5×54mm French cartridge; a shortened version of the 7.5×57mm MAS mod. 1924 cartridge that had been introduced in 1924 (then modified in 1929), for France's FM 24/29 light machine gun. The rifle was developed based on French experience in World War I and combines various features of other rifles like the two rear locking lugs of the British SMLE rifle (easy to clean and resistant to dirt), the "dog leg" shaped bolt handle of the British P14/U.S. M1917 Enfield rifle that places the bolt knob at a favorable ergonomic position in relation to the trigger and peep sight, and the five-round box magazine (claw extractor) of the German Gewehr 98 which stored 5 rounds in a staggered column and fed by 5-round stripper clips), to produce an "ugly, roughly made, but immensely strong and reliable" service rifle.
There are just five user removable parts: a Lebel-type cruciform bayonet inserted into a guard tube under the barrel (taken out by the stopper and turned by snap-fastening the stopper in the tube to fix), the bolt body, the bolt rear cap, the firing pin and the spring of the firing pin. The metal parts of the rifle were black baked in an oven.
The MAS-36 bolt handle was bent forward in an "awkward fashion" to bring it into a convenient position for the soldier's hand. Some have since been found bent backwards into a facing-downwards position like that of many other bolt-action rifles. The MAS-36 had a relatively short barrel and was fitted with large aperture (rear) and post (front) sights designed for typical combat ranges. Typical for French rifles of the period, the MAS-36 had no manual safety.
The rifle was designed with an iron sight line consisting of a rear a tangent-type aperture sight element that was calibrated for 7.5×54mm French mle1929 C ammunition for in increments. The original front sighting element was milled and consisted of a front post that was protected by two open 'ears'.
There were 25 rear aperture elements available for the sight line to optimize it horizontally and laterally in 2.32 MOA increments during assembly at the arsenal. These arsenal mounted rear aperture elements shifted to point of aim left or right or up or down at a range of .
It is worth noting that the front stock fittings are a major component of setting the sights on a MAS-36. To discourage disassembling the front stock non-standard screws with a spanner head were used on the barrel band and nose caps. Only armorers were issued with the appropriate screw drivers to remove the front stock. If removed the front stock will probably face quite a bit of trial and error in getting the screws set back to their exact positions again.
It was normally carried with a loaded magazine and empty chamber until the soldier was engaged in combat, though the rifle's firing mechanism could be blocked by raising the bolt handle. The MAS-36 carried a 17-inch spike bayonet, reversed in a tube below the barrel. To use the bayonet, a spring plunger was pressed to release the bayonet. It was then free to be pulled out, turned around, and fitted back into its receptacle. The initial implementation of this bayonet design has a distinct (although, uncommonly encountered) disadvantage: with a bayonet stored in one rifle and the other empty, the top of the stored bayonet could be locked into the empty bayonet tube of the second rifle. This obscures the release button on the bayonet and results in permanently (at least up to destructive disassembly) mated rifles. In post-war use the French updated the bayonet storage design by drilling a hole in the bayonet, which allowed the locking catch to be depressed through an already-drilled hole in the bayonet cap. Like the Lebel model 1886 rifle, the MAS-36 featured a stacking hook offset to the right side of the barrel for standing a number of the rifles (usually a trio) upright.
Background.
The MAS-36 was intended as an economical simple bolt action rifle to serve with rear echelon, colonial and reserve troops alongside and meant to share machining and pave the way for a new standard semi-automatic rifle before the next big conflict. The first French semi-automatic rifle evolved from the prototype MAS-38/39. A limited number of MAS-40 semi-automatic rifles entered trail service in March 1940. The Battle of France and following German occupation of France prevented large scale introduction of semi-automatic service rifles amongst French front line troops. During the 1950s the French military adopted the semi-automatic MAS-49 rifle as their standard service rifle.
Though intended to replace the Lebel Model 1886 and Berthier rifles as well as Berthier carbines, budget constraints limited MAS-36 production, and it served along with the former rifles in many French army and colonial units. During World War II, the MAS-36 was used alongside the Lebel 1886 and Berthiers during the Battle of France. After the Battle of France, the Germans took over a large number of MAS-36s, which were given the designation "Gewehr 242(f)" and put into service with their own garrison units based in occupied France and later the Volkssturm.
Further development.
Post World War II produced rifles feature production simplifications like stamped nose caps with a hooded front sight element, stamped magazine floor plates, a stamped front sling attachment featuring a ring, a protective measure to prevent dirt ingress in the trigger area and a side-mounted cam track and button to dial and lock the selected firing range on the rear sight element. The hooded front sight element reduced glare under unfavorable light conditions and added extra protection for the post. The bolt of post World War II produced rifles can not be closed on an empty chamber, indicating the rifle needs to be reloaded. Later post war batches feature phosphating/Parkerizing introduced as a more effective metal surface treatment against rust. The "second model" is the most produced version with its derivative, the MAS 36/51.
Postwar usage.
The MAS-36 was extensively used by French Army and colonial defense forces during France's postwar counter-insurgency operations in the First Indochina War and the Algerian War, as well as in the Suez Crisis. During the Suez Crisis, French paratroop marksmen of the "2ème RPC" ("Régiment de Parachutistes Coloniaux"), employed telescope-sighted MAS-36 rifles to eliminate enemy snipers. The MAS-36 remained in service into the early 1960s as an infantry rifle, often serving with indigenous colonial units. It was officially a substitute-standard rifle after France adopted the semi-automatic MAS-49 rifle series in 1949, though its bolt design lives on in a dedicated sniper version of the rifle, the FR F1 (now chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO) and its successor the FR F2 sniper rifle.
Gabon and Côte d'Ivoire continued to use the MAS-36 post independence; In 1968 and 1969 they supplied Biafra with MAS-36 rifles during the Nigerian Civil War. Haiti presented Biafra with 300 rifles as a gift late in the conflict.
After the Second World War, civilian hunting rifle versions were made by MAS and by the gunsmith Jean Fournier. These half-stocked rifles were chambered for the 7×54mm Fournier (common, 7.5x54mm necked down to 7mm), 7×57mm Mauser (very rare), 8×60mm S (less common), and 10.75×68mm (rare). Hunting rifles in the two latter calibers had integral muzzle brakes. Also imported into the United States were a few military surplus MAS-36 rifles, converted to 7.62×51mm NATO from 7.5×54mm. These rifles were modified to chamber the NATO round and also had an SKS type trigger safety fitted to them.
In Comoros, the French had a decent amount of MAS-36 rifles in storage during WWII and the Post-war era. When Comoros became in independent nation in 1975, the rifles were given to the new Comoros Army. The MAS-36 was widely used during many of the coups and attempted coups that took place on the island nation from 1975 to 1989. After a reformation of the Comoros Army in 1990, the MAS-36 was replaced with newer assault weapons such as the AK-47.
In 1941, Britain and Free France occupied Syria, bringing thousands of MAS-36 rifles with them. When French forces departed from Syria in 1946, the rifles were given to the Syrian Armed Forces in order to arm their own army and militias, as the Syrian government at the time was perceived as pro-western. The MAS-36 was widely used by Syrian forces in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The Israeli victory and later, a coup in Syria led to Syria's loyalty shifting towards the Soviet Union instead of western countries. After purchasing large quantities of Soviet weapons in the 1950s and 1960s, the MAS-36 became obsolete with thousands of units being sent into government storage facilities. In 2011 during the Syrian Civil War, Syrian opposition forces captured thousands of the stored rifles. With nearly all of the rifles being still operational, the Free Syrian Army widely used the MAS-36 from 2011 to 2015. From 2015 onward, the Free Syrian Army is decreasing the use of the MAS-36 due to scarcity of the rifle's needed 7.5mm ammunition.
FR F1 and FR F2 sniper rifles.
The French FR F1 and FR F2 sniper rifles utilize the same basic bolt design as the MAS-36 infantry rifle. The MAS-36 bolt action was however extensively modified and strengthened to reduce accuracy inhibiting flex in these sniper rifles.


Maurice Zucrow

Maurice Joseph Zucrow (December 15, 1899 – June 1975) was a Ukrainian-born American scientist and aerospace engineer known for his contributions to the development of gas turbines and jet propulsion. Zucrow was born in Kiev and immigrated with his family to the UK in 1900. Young Maurice attended Central Foundation Boys' School in London. The family moved to the US in 1914.
In 1922 Maurice Zucrow became the first person to graduate with a BS degree in engineering from Harvard University. He went on to receive a S.M degree from the same school next year. Zucrow was also the first recipient of a doctoral degree in engineering at Purdue University completing his dissertation in Mechanical Engineering in 1928. His PhD advisor was Andrey Abraham Potter, Dean of Purdue University College of Engineering.
After leaving Purdue in 1929, Zucrow spent 17 years in industry. During his work at Elliott Company, he played an important part in the research and development of the nation's first gas turbine built in 1942. He also helped develop Aerojet’s JATO rocket, used by seaplanes to assist takeoff under adverse conditions. During the World War II, Zucrow was asked to teach a course in jet propulsion theory to engineers in the aircraft industry as part of the Engineering, Science, and Management War Training (ESMWT) program at the University of California, Los Angeles.
In 1946 he joined the faculty of Purdue School of Aeronautics and Astronautics establishing Purdue's Jet Propulsion Center. The research facility was renamed Maurice J. Zucrow Propulsion Laboratories in 1998 and is now the world's largest academic propulsion laboratory. In 1948 Zucrow published Principles of Jet Propulsion and Gas Turbines, the first textbook in this field.
In 1957 Zucrow was elected to the board of directors of American Rocket Society together with Wernher von Braun. In 1962 Zucrow received the Sigma Xi national research award and delivered the award lecture entitled "Space Propulsion Engines - Their Characteristics and Problems". He received the Distinguished Civilian Service award from the Department of the Army in 1967.
Zucrow's residence in West Lafayette was 801 Carrolton Boulevard in Hill and Dales neighborhood adjacent to the Purdue campus.


Nightmares Fear Factory

The Nightmares Fear Factory is a psychological haunted house attraction in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. They are known for posting images of their visitors just as they have been shocked to a Flickr account.
The attraction is allegedly built in an old coffin factory. The former owner of the factory, Abraham Mortimer, was killed when a stack of coffins collapsed upon him.
Patrons are told that if they get too scared they can say the safety-word "nightmares" and they will escort you out. However, sometimes they will not escort you out and continue the scaring even worse than before. In the last five years, about a half-million people have gone through, and many have opted out part-way and had their names added to a public "chicken list". Over 161,000 people, (as of 2019), have had to leave through the chicken exit.
The tour takes about 10 minutes and is in total darkness, except for small red lights on the floors, walls and ceiling that patrons must follow in order to get through the haunted house.
Unlike conventional haunted houses, the Nightmares Fear Factory doesn't rely primarily on blood and gore in order to induce fear. Rather, there are live actors in scary costumes that come at the patrons out of the darkness and taunt them, yell at them, speak in creepy voices, etc. They have been known to grab, push and pull patrons in order to get a reaction. There are also scary sounds like growls, eerie music, spooky voices, yelling, and so on.
Highlights of the attraction include a room where the walls appear to shrink, a shaky drawbridge, a car charging at the tourists, and a room where two black air mattresses inflate on the tourists and they are forced to crawl on the ground and push the mattresses out of the way in order to survive claustrophobia.


Underfriction

On a roller coaster train, the underfriction, up-lift, or up-stop wheels are a device to keep the train from jumping off the track under intense movement. The design was patented in 1919 by John A. Miller.


Jean-Paul Troadec

Jean-Paul Troadec (born October 14, 1948 in Saint-Renan, Finistère, France) is a French aerospace engineer and public servant. He is the former President of the French "Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile", the country's aviation accident investigation bureau.
Biography.
Troadec graduated from "École polytechnique" (X 67) and "École nationale de l'aviation civile" (IAC 70) and started his career in 1972 as an engineer at the certification office of the Direction générale de l'aviation civile. In 1975, he became head of the "engine and research" department. In 1980, he moved to the "approval of equipment, pollution and noise measurements" department before becoming head of the Airbus engine and CFM56 department. From 1985 till 1993, he was head of the "Service d'exploitation de la formation aéronautique". In 1993, he was appointed head of the air traffic department. Then, until 2002, he was head of the human resources department. In 2002, he joined the French government's Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transport and Housing.
He was nominated President of the "Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile" in 2009, succeeding Paul-Louis Arslanian.


Elizabeth Donnelly (engineer)

Elizabeth Donnelly is a British engineer and executive. She is currently the chief executive officer of Women's Engineering Society United Kingdom. Donnelly was appointed CEO on August 23, 2018.
A systems engineer by education, Donnelly worked with companies such as Rolls Royce. She was a founding member of the Royal Aeronautical Society’s (RAeS) Women in Aviation and Aerospace Committee.
Career.
Donnelly began her career in Systems Engineering studying Databases and Systems Thinking: Managing Complexity at Open University before she specialized in Systems Thinking and graduated with a Masters in Systems Thinking in Practice. In 2005, she started work with Rolls Royce as an adviser on lobbying governments to support trade unions. In 2008 Donnelly became Non-Executive Director of the East Midlands Developments Agency. She worked as Head of Skills to lead skills policy in ADS Group Ltd, the trade organization for aerospace, defence and security in the United Kingdom.
In 2013, Donnelly set up her own consulting company, Pereloquens Ltd, focused around providing professional service support for organizations like the College of Arts at Glasgow University and Conway Hall Ethical Society. In August 2018, Elizabeth was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of the Women's Engineering Society (WES) to replace Kirsten Bodley.


Organ recital

An organ recital is a concert at which music specially written for the organ is played.
The music played at such recitals is typically written for pipe organ, which includes church organs, theatre organs and symphonic organs (also known as concert organs). Increasing restoration of theatre and cinema organs (such as the Wurlitzers) also allows current performances of many pieces that can only be played on theatre organs.
History.
Recitals appear to have arisen from playing before and after religious services. In 19th-century synagogues, organs appeared before their use in services was allowed; instead their purpose was to give concerts before the sundown Shabat service. Sweelinck's duties included the giving of extra-liturgical concerts in Amsterdam's Oude Kerk.
Logistics.
Pipe organs are not, in general, portable instruments. The venues for organ recitals using those instruments are thus the churches, theatres, or halls where the organs are housed. Some instruments of about a century ago were built to be listened to while strolling, such as those at the Wanamaker department store in Philadelphia or the museum of San Francisco's Palace of the Legion of Honor, which is not heard to best advantage from any one spot.
However, with some organs the console is portable to a limited extent (such as, for example, being attached to a platform that can be raised or lowered, which is often the case for theatre organs, but less often the case for church organs, with some exception, like the Crystal Cathedral organ in California. Where this is the case, the console is moved for the recital so that the audience can see the organist playing.
Notable venues and recitals.
The Wanamaker Organ is played twice daily, Monday through Saturday, free of charge, for patrons and those who visit Macy's Department Store in the Wanamaker Building in Philadelphia. The Grand Court Organist is Peter Richard Conte, and when he is touring, assistant organists perform to ensure the organ is played every day.
The Dane and Polly Bales Organ Recital Hall at the University of Kansas was specifically constructed for organ recitals.
The Harvard Organ Society holds regular organ recitals at the Adolphus Busch Hall.
The Temple Square Organ Recitals show off the organs in and around Temple Square, including the Salt Lake Tabernacle organ (most often in the Tabernacle) others are the LDS Conference Center organ and the Salt Lake Assembly Hall organ (occasionally). During the summer: Monday through Saturday noon and 2 pm. Sunday 2 pm. Non-summer: Monday through Saturday noon, and Sunday at 2 pm.
To show off its new concert organ, the Walt Disney Concert Hall held a series of organ recitals in 2004 and 2005. There is now a regular season of organ recitals at the venue featuring famous classical organists from around the world.
In Hollywood, California, the historic El Capitan Theater (also owned by the Disney company) showcases its Wurlitzer Organ regularly before its scheduled shows and movie showings. Organ recitals preceding Disney shows usually consist of Disney Favorites and Show Tunes, but well-known theater organ greats occasionally visit to do special shows at the theater, such as Bob Ralston of Lawrence Welk fame. Mr. Ralston also hosts organ recitals at his home in Granada Hills.
Also in California, the Orange County Theater Organ Society hosts frequent theater organ recitals at the Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton, featuring its own original Wurlitzer pipe organ from 1930. As part of its season, some of these recital programs also include a silent film accompanied by the theater organ, to provide a complete experience the way it was originally intended. A long list of accomplished organists regularly frequent the Plummer, including Chris Elliot and the inimitable Bob Ralston.
While world-famous organist Frederick Swann was in residence at First Congregational Church in Los Angeles between 1998 and 2001, where he supervised the improvement of the organ to rival that of his former church, the Crystal Cathedral, to become the largest church organ in the world (with over 20,000 pipes), he instituted a music festival called "Organ Alive!" that featured organ recitals and concerts, collaborating with many renowned musicians to revive Los Angeles' organ music culture. The annual conference and organ series attracted people from all over the world to Los Angeles and continued in the years following Mr. Swann's retirement as principal organist of the church. Following the success of this recital series and the awareness that was revived in the city, two new significant pipe organs were commissioned in the city: that of the Disney Concert Hall and the Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels (one block from Disney Hall).
The Los Angeles OLA Cathedral also holds weekly organ recitals on Wednesdays at 12:45 pm, following the noon mass. Follow the music link on the Cathedral's website for details on artists and programs.
A performance of the complete organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach was held on November 22, 2014 at St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Manhattan. Twenty organists from The Juilliard School performed. Juilliard Organ Department Chair, Paul Jacobs, curated the eighteen-hour performance.


Mustek Systems

Mustek Systems Inc. is a Taiwanese manufacturing company based in Hsinchu, Taiwan, established in October 1988. Its brand name is Mustek (abbreviation for "Most Unique Sensible Technology").
Mustek manufacturers electro-optical and electronic devices, for example Image scanners, digital cameras, video equipment, DVD players, notebooks to power supply equipment etc. By the end of 1996, Mustek Systems has become the biggest scanner manufacturer by volume (4 million customers). The company's motto is "Digital Life, Live it".
The main factory is based in Dongguan, (Guangdong province on mainland China. Subsidiaries are based in Neuss (Germany), Japan and in Irvine, CA (United States).


Nanomagnet

A nanomagnet is a submicrometric system that presents spontaneous magnetic order (magnetization) at zero applied magnetic field (remanence).
The small size of nanomagnets prevents the formation of magnetic domains (see single domain (magnetic)). The magnetization dynamics of sufficiently small nanomagnets at low temperatures, typically single-molecule magnets, presents quantum phenomena, such as macroscopic spin tunnelling. At larger temperatures, the magnetization undergoes random thermal fluctuations (superparamagnetism) which present a limit for the use of nanomagnets for permanent information storage.
Canonical examples of nanomagnets are grains of ferromagnetic metals (iron, cobalt, and nickel) and single-molecule magnets. The vast majority of nanomagnets feature transition metal (titanium, vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt or nickel) or rare earth (Gadolinium, Europium, Erbium) magnetic atoms.
The ultimate limit in miniaturization of nanomagnets was achieved in 2016: individual Ho atoms present remanence when deposited on a atomically thin layer of MgO coating a silver film was reported by scientists from EPFL and ETH, in Switzerland. Before that, the smallest nanomagnets reported, attending to the number of magnetic atoms, were double decker phthalocyanes molecules with only one rare-earth atom. Other systems presenting remanence are nanoengineered Fe chains, deposited on Cu2N/Cu(100) surfaces, showing either Neel or ferromagnetic ground states with in systems with as few as 5 Fe atoms with S=2. Canonical single-molecule magnets are the so-called Mn12 and Fe8 systems, with 12 and 8 transition metal atoms each and both with spin 10 (S = 10) ground states.
The phenomenon of zero field magnetization requires three conditions:
Conditions 1 and 2, but not 3, have been demonstrated in a number of nanostructures, such as nanoparticles, nanoislands, and quantum dots with a controlled number of magnetic atoms (between 1 and 10).


Node (circuits)

In electrical engineering, a node is any region on a circuit between two circuit elements. In circuit diagrams, connections are ideal wires with zero resistance, so a node consists of the entire section of wire between elements, not just a single point.
According to Ohm's law, "V = IR", the voltage across any two points of a node with negligible resistance is
showing that the voltage at every point of a node is the same. However, there are some notable exceptions where the voltage difference is large enough to become significant:
Dots used to mark nodes on a circuit diagram are sometimes referred to as "meatballs".


China cymbal

In western music, China-type cymbals are a distinct type of crash cymbals designed to produce a bright, crisp, and explosive tone. It is for this reason that they have been nicknamed "trash cymbals". The name "China cymbal" comes from their shape, which is similar to the Chinese Bo. They are most frequently mounted upside down on cymbal stands, allowing for them to be more easily struck and for a better sound.
China-type cymbals are mostly commonplace in various interpretations of rock music, particularly heavy metal and thrash metal. It is also frequently used for jazz fusion, Latin, and Brazilian music especially those with elaborate drum solos. In Latin and several world music, China cymbals are usually played in conjunction with other percussions instead of a drum kit, such as timbales, octobans or surdo. China cymbals may also be used for conventional jazz, often played with mallets or brushes to achieve a softer sound resembling that of a "dark crash" cymbals.
Anatomy.
China type cymbals typically have a bell that is cylindrical or shaped like a truncated cone with its base the top of the bell, an outer rim that is turned up in the reverse direction to the main bow of the cymbal, little or no taper (change in thickness) from bell to rim, and an area including the inside of the bell that is unpolished. However, many china type cymbals have only several or in some cases none of these distinguishing characteristics. The distinguishing feature of a china type cymbal is the one that is hardest to define: its sound. China cymbals are those whose sounds are derived from the Chinese, rather than the Turkish, tradition of cymbal making.
Cymbals are classified into two or three tonal families: Turkish; Chinese; and some would say European, although others would include the European family of tones as a development of the Turkish sounds. The best Turkish (and European) cymbals have a rich, swelling tone that some describe as "sweet". To western ears, the best china types have an abrasive, cutting sound that is described by western drummers as "trashy".
The families do to some extent overlap. Notably, pang and swish cymbals have some characteristics of china types, and some characteristics of traditional Turkish cymbals. On the other hand, the Sabian rocktagon cymbals, and some Ufip models, are considered china types while having none of the physical characteristics of the normal china type, while the Paiste crystal crash is considered a European cymbal despite its squarish bell.
Cymbal making in China is claimed to predate the development of the art anywhere else in the world. The most universally acclaimed cymbal alloy, bell bronze, appears to have been independently developed in China. Today in China a wide range of cymbals are manufactured of both traditional and imported patterns. Traditional Chinese types with distinctive names and sounds include chung, jing, and water cymbals, as well as many other types. In Western music these are all referred to as china type cymbals.
China type cymbals are available in a wide range of sizes from down to , most types singly but some in pairs. Those of or smaller are normally referred to in Western music as china splash cymbals. When used in a drum kit, they are regarded as effects cymbals and are used to give colour and variety.
In a drum kit, china-type cymbals can be mounted either with the bell facing upward (similar to other cymbals) as well as with the bell facing downward. When mounted bell-down, the upturned rim becomes a downturned rim, allowing a normal stick technique to be used for both ride and crash patterns. This assumes that the bell is formed in the typical direction; some china type cymbals (e.g., the Paiste 2002 Novo china) have an inverted bell and an upturned rim, and so must be mounted bell up to achieve this downwards rim orientation.
Types.
Traditional.
Conical (termed "square") bell rough finished on the inside; reversed edge.
Novo.
Conventional rounded bell, reversed edge. The bell may be or may not be reversed.
Pang and swish.
The swish and pang are specific sounds within the enormous range of china cymbals, developed as exotic ride cymbals but also used as crashes at higher volumes.
China splash.
A "China splash" cymbal is typically or smaller.
Sabian refers to both their nova Chinese models as mini Chinese.
Rocktagon.
The "Rocktagon", a Sabian exclusive, is an octagonal cymbal with a sound midway between a crash and a china. The cymbal is manufactured as round and cut to shape after all-over lathing. Available sizes include , , and initially , as well as and Rocktagon splash.
Sticking techniques.
China cymbals are played in various ways, depending on the genre of music.
For example, in modern metal music, players generally tend to play using the shoulder of the stick rather than the tip for a more "trashy" sound. In other genres, such as jazz (which can use less hammered cymbals for a lighter and less distorted effect), the drummer often plays with the tip for more of a "sizzle" sound.


Radio button

A radio button or option button is a graphical control element that allows the user to choose only one of a predefined set of mutually exclusive options. The singular property of a radio button makes it distinct from a checkbox, which allows more than one (or no) item to be selected and for the unselected state to be restored.
Radio buttons are arranged in groups of two or more and displayed on screen as, for example, a list of circular holes that can contain white space (for unselected) or a dot (for selected). Each radio button is normally accompanied by a label describing the choice that the radio button represents. The choices are mutually exclusive; when the user selects a radio button, any previously selected radio button in the same group becomes deselected (making it so only one can be selected). Selecting a radio button is done by clicking the mouse on the button, or the caption, or by using a keyboard shortcut.
It is possible that initially none of the radio buttons in a group are selected. This unselected state cannot be restored by interacting with the radio button widget, though it may be possible through other user interface elements.
When used in an HTML form, if no button in a group is checked, then no name–value pair is passed when the form is submitted. For example, for a radio button group named Sex with the options Male and Female, the variable Sex would not be passed, even with a blank value.
Etymology.
Radio buttons were named after the physical buttons used on older radios to select preset stations – when one of the buttons was pressed, other buttons would pop out, leaving the pressed button the only button in the "pushed in" position.
HTML.
In web forms, the HTML element is used to display a radio button. Example:
<form>
 <input type="radio" name="season" value="winter" checked>Winter
 <input type="radio" name="season" value="spring">Spring
 <input type="radio" name="season" value="summer">Summer
 <input type="radio" name="season" value="autumn">Autumn
</form>
A group of attributes is defined by name. In one group, only one radio button can be chosen.
Unicode.
Version 6 of the Unicode standard includes a character designated to represent a radio button (🔘) at code point 128,280 (U+1F518), found in the Miscellaneous Symbols and Pictographs section. Similar characters are the circled dot operator (⊙) (U+2299), fisheye (◉) (U+25C9), and bullseye (◎) (U+25CE).
The font Wingdings 2 contains at position 153 and 158 glyphs that look like radio buttons.


Rotary Wing Test and Evaluation Squadron


Cairo Eye

Cairo Eye, also known as Ain Cairo () is a ferris wheel under construction located on the banks of the Nile River in the Zamalek district of Cairo, Egypt.
It will be considered Cairo's first recreational and touristic observation wheel spanning over of land area and a height of , making it the largest ferris wheel in Africa and the fifth largest worldwide, expected to attract around 2.5 million visitors a year.
In recent years, the adjacent city of Giza, home to the Sphinx and pyramids, has received the lion's share of tourism projects. From Giza's long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum to the new pyramids visitor center and the recently opened Sphinx International Airport, Egypt is betting big on Giza tourism and hopes the same for Cairo.
In accordance with Egypt's 2030 Vision, Egypt aims to resuscitate its tourism sector with the new tourist attraction. As Egypt’s tourism authority anticipates that the wheel will certainly boost Egypt's economy, especially after the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Facilities.
Cairo Eye is placed near one of Cairo's major archaeological attractions, the Cairo Tower, and it aims to link both entertainment and cultural learning together, set to have an integrated recreational area established around the Ferris wheel to serve as a tourist destination.
The wheel will have 48 total cabins with a panoramic 360 view of Cairo with a capacity of 6-8 passengers each cabin, and will carry around 15,000 visitors a day. The height of the wheel, offers a bird's-eye view of the city for up to which includes the views of downtown Cairo, the renowned Great Pyramid of Giza and the Sphinx.
The Cairo Eye will also include services and facilities like retailers of international brands, fine dining restaurants, a food court, an entertainment and events area, as well as a multi-purpose hall overlooking the Nile River.
As for the inevitable congestion and traffic jams, the project will be provided with a covered car parking area (two levels) with a capacity of 500 vehicles, 'Ain Cairo taxi services' and 'Ain Cairo free transport drop on/off buses' as well as river transportation.
Tickets to ride the Cairo Eye are expected to range between $15 and $22, but prices will be reviewed once the project is complete.
Construction.
The beginning of construction on the Cairo Eye wheel was officially announced by the Governor of Cairo on January 21, 2021 and it comes to support the Egypt Vision 2030 strategy to boost tourism in Egypt and economic development launched by the president of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. The project is owned by Hawaii Tourism, which are in negotiations with 4 banks to finance 50% of the investment cost of the Cairo Eye project.
Cairo Eye is set to be completed and opened in 2022 at a cost of EGP 500 million ($32 million), providing 1,200 direct job opportunities and 4,000 indirect job opportunities.
Concerns.
Location.
Zamalek residents have raised concerns over the project’s potential impact on the already-crowded district and its infrastructure. In order to preserve the identity and entity of the disctrict, while taking into account the preservation of all trees and palms in the area, the project has adopted a plan to achieve an increase in the total green areas of the project by 15% to reach instead of the current .
Even after Cairo Eye officials stated that the project will actually increase total green space by 15%. Some stakeholders, such as Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, suggest moving the attraction closer to Egypt's New Administrative Capital, an under-construction locale designed to alleviate Cairo congestion.
Traffic.
Cairo is notoriously gridlocked, and many residents and even government officials worry an attraction of this size could only worsen things. Project leaders stated that they have studied traffic management and proposed solutions like the Cairo Eye Nile Taxi, a hop-on-hop-off bus, and a parking garage set to hold up to 500 cars.


Screw machine

A screw machine may refer to a:


Zeng Qinghong

Zeng Qinghong (born 30 July 1939) is a retired Chinese politician. He was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, China's highest leadership council, and top-ranked member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee between 2002 and 2007. He also served as the Vice-President of the People's Republic of China from 2003 to 2008.
During the 1990s, Zeng was a close ally of then-Party general secretary Jiang Zemin, and was instrumental in consolidating Jiang's power. For years, Zeng was the primary force behind the party's organization and personnel.
Early life.
Zeng was born to a family of Hakka background in Ji'an, Jiangxi province, in July 1939. He was the son of Zeng Shan, a communist revolutionary and later Minister of the Interior, and Deng Liujin (), a notable female participant of the Long March. Zeng was the eldest of five children. He graduated from Beijing 101 Middle School and the Automatic Control Department at the Beijing Institute of Technology. Zeng was an engineer, a specialist in automatic control systems. He joined the Communist Party of China (CPC) in April 1960. Due to the revolutionary heritage of his father, Zeng was seen as a member of the so-called "Crown Prince Party", the descendants of veteran revolutionaries.
Zeng spent the early part of his career as a technician in the military defense industry in Beijing. He was sent down to do manual labor on People's Liberation Army bases in Hunan and Guangdong during the Cultural Revolution. With the opening of the reform era, Zeng joined the State Development and Reform Commission in 1979 and then held a series of management positions in the state petroleum sector, including a series of foreign liaison positions with the China National Offshore Oil Corporation.
Climbing the ranks.
In 1984, Zeng began working for the Shanghai municipal government, where he became a key ally of then-Party Committee Secretary Jiang Zemin. When Jiang was elevated to General Secretary of the Communist Party of China in national leadership re-shuffle following the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, he brought Zeng Qinghong along as his adviser.
As the deputy chief of the General Office of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 1993, Zeng guided Jiang, an outsider to national politics, through the inner workings of the party, military and bureaucratic structure in Beijing. He promoted Jiang's leadership and thinking, broadened Jiang's network, and became Jiang's right-hand-man. Over the 1990s, Zeng consolidated control of party organs responsible for the appointment of cadres to important political positions. As head of the party's Organization Department from 1999 to 2002, Zeng strengthened Jiang's position by promoting members of the Jiang's "Shanghai clique" to leading central and regional posts. He also helped propagate Jiang's guiding political philosophy known as the "Three Represents" inside the party.
Over the next decade, he acquired a reputation as Jiang's 'hatchet man' against rivals. In 1992 he supposedly helped Jiang remove President Yang Shangkun and elder PLA General Yang Baibing, who threatened Jiang's support within the military. Then, he used an anti-corruption campaign to orchestrate the downfall of Beijing party chief and Jiang's foe Chen Xitong. Because he was seen to represent highly partisan interests, many of Jiang's factional opponents were said to be highly resistant to Zeng joining the Politburo as a full member for years. However, Jiang made it clear that a 'pre-condition' for his stepping down at the 16th Party Congress was for Zeng to become a member of the elite Politburo Standing Committee.
Politburo Standing Committee.
At the 16th Party Congress held in 2002, Zeng became a member of the 16th Central Committee, a member of its Politburo and of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), the Party's central decision making body, as well as serving as the executive secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, responsible for party administrative affairs and policy coordination.
During his term in the PSC, although he was formally ranked fifth, Zeng was seen as a 'power broker' in the party, believed to possess power that was second only to General secretary Hu Jintao. Initially seen as a rival to general secretary Hu Jintao, Zeng was obliged to show a willingness to work towards consensus with the old guard following Jiang's semi-retirement.
On 6 June 2003, Zeng issued an order "not to play or sing 'The Internationale' in any provincial, city or county level party or party member meetings." The move was characterized as distancing China from orthodox communist doctrine.
Although Jiang stepped down from the PSC to make way for a younger "fourth generation" of leadership led by Hu Jintao, Jiang continued to wield significant influence on the new group of leaders, particularly through Zeng. Due in large measure to Zeng's efforts, six out of the nine new members of the Standing Committee, Wu Bangguo, Jia Qinglin, Huang Ju, Li Changchun, Luo Gan, and Zeng himself, were linked to Jiang's "Shanghai Clique" and considered his allies.
As Jiang Zemin reached the end of his term, observers speculated that Jiang may well have preferred Zeng Qinghong over Hu Jintao as his successor. But Hu prevailed in succeeding Jiang, ostensibly because Hu was 'handpicked' by former leader Deng Xiaoping. Zeng became Vice-President in March 2003 at the National People's Congress held that year. During the SARS outbreak, Hu and Premier Wen Jiabao took very strong and assertive action while Zeng and other Jiang loyalists receded to the background. Zeng was also initially expected to succeed Hu as Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission as a condition of Jiang's resignation from the chairmanship in favor of Hu. However, when Jiang stepped down on 19 September 2004, Xu Caihou, and not Zeng, became Vice-chairman.
Shifting loyalties.
Although initially seen as a Jiang loyalist, observers characterized Zeng as much more sophisticated and shrewd and possessing more political savvy compared to his former boss Jiang. In addition, Zeng was said to differ with Jiang's "Shanghai Clique" on policy preferences. Zeng was an important figure within the highest ranks of party leadership. He was said to be a crucial player in pushing Jiang's move towards full retirement in 2004, when Jiang relinquished his final title, Chairman of the Central Military Commission. Observers saw the push for Jiang's retirement as indicating consensus between Zeng and Hu.
In the following years, Zeng emerged as a kingmaker-style figure, and a 'point-man' for Hu to manage crises situations. After the death of Zhao Ziyang, the former party General Secretary who lost power following the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, Zeng worked as the intermediary between the Zhao's family and the senior party leadership. Zeng also worked with Hu to manage the potential effects on China of the ouster of authoritarian regimes in Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine. The head of the Ministry of State Security, China's top intelligence organization, was said to report directly to Zeng, as his father was the former head of this agency. When Shanghai Party Committee Secretary Chen Liangyu was dismissed in September 2006, Zeng led the anti-corruption task force against his longtime political enemy since they were in Shanghai. Additionally, Zeng also played a leading role in coordinating the funeral service for Politburo Standing Committee member Huang Ju, who died of cancer in 2007.
Departure.
At the 17th Party Congress held in 2007, Zeng departed from the Central Committee, its Politburo, and the Politburo Standing Committee. His departure, which was seen as his retirement because of age, meant that he could no longer serve on the Communist Party's secretariat nor oversee the party's organization. His Vice-presidency ended in March 2008 at the 2008 National People's Congress. Before his retirement, however, Zeng used his political strength to secure the elevation of Xi Jinping and Zhou Yongkang into the Politburo Standing Committee. Xi, who succeeded Zeng in his posts of Vice-President and executive secretary of the Secretariat, then became the heir apparent to succeed Hu Jintao as China's top leader. Zhou, who was his closest subordinate in his 'Oil Clique', became the most powerful Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission. Since then Zeng has made public appearances only on a few ceremonial occasions, such as the 30th anniversary of the Third plenum of the 11th Central Committee in 2008.
Son's wealth.
In 2008, Zeng's son, Zeng Wei (), paid over A$32 million (~$24 million USD) to buy a luxurious Australian property located in Sydney; at the time, it was said to be the third most expensive residential property transaction in Australia. He further caused controversy with his fight to demolish and rebuild it. In 2007, an exposé published by finance magazine "Caijing" alleged that Zeng Wei had, through a series of complex corporate vehicles, completed the purchase of power generation giant Shandong Luneng at 70 billion yuan (~$10 billion) below market value, and that Zeng Wei was, for all intents and purposes, the real owner of company despite his name not appearing in corporate documents.


Wii Menu

The Wii Menu is the graphical shell of the Wii game console, as part of the Wii system software. It has four pages, each with a 4:3 grid, and each displaying the current time and date. Available applications, known as "channels", are displayed and can be navigated using the pointer capability of the Wii Remote. The grid is customizable; users can move channels (except for the Disc Channel) among the menu's 48 customizable slots by pressing and holding the A and B button while hovering over the channel the user wants to move. By pressing the plus and minus buttons on the Wii Remote users can scroll across accessing empty slots.
Pre-installed channels.
Disc Channel.
The "Disc Channel" is the primary way to play Wii and GameCube titles from supported Nintendo optical discs inserted into the console.
If no disc is inserted, the message "Please insert a disc." will be displayed along with images of a template Wii and GameCube disc (the latter is not visible on the Wii Mini, Wii Family Edition units and the Wii U due to lack of GameCube support). The "Start" button will also remain deactivated until a playable disc is inserted.
When a disc is inserted, the channel preview and banner on the menu will change to the one supplied by the title and the "Start" button will become available. If it is a GameCube disc, the banner and preview will change to the GameCube logo with the GameCube startup theme playing.
Each Wii game disc includes a system update partition, which includes the latest Wii software from the time the game was released. If a disc that is inserted contains newer software than the one installed on the console, installing the new software will be required to play the game. This allows users without an internet connection to still receive system updates. When loaded into the disc slot, an icon on the Disc Channel that says "Wii System Update" appears. After selecting the channel, the Wii will automatically update. If these updates are not installed, the game will remain unplayable until the update is installed, as each time the channel is loaded with the game inserted, the update prompt will appear, and declining the update will return the player to the Wii Menu instead of starting the game.
Games requiring a system update can still be played without updating using homebrew software, such as Gecko OS or a USB loader.
Mii Channel.
The "Mii Channel" is an avatar creator, where users can design 3D caricatures of people called Miis by selecting from a group of facial and bodily features. At the Game Developers Conference 2007, Shigeru Miyamoto explained that the look and design of the Mii characters are based on Kokeshi, a form of Japanese doll used as souvenir gifts.
A "Wired" interview of Katsuya Eguchi (producer of "Animal Crossing" and "Wii Sports") held in 2006 confirmed that the custom player avatar feature shown at Nintendo's E3 Media Briefing would be included in the hardware. The feature was described as part of a "profile" system that contains the Mii and other pertinent player information. This application was officially unveiled by Nintendo in September 2006. It is incorporated into Wii's operating system interface as the "Mii Channel". Users can select from pre-made Miis or create their own by choosing custom facial shapes, colors, and positioning. In certain games like "Wii Sports", "Wii Play", "Wii Fit", "Wii Sports Resort", "Wii Party", "Wii Fit Plus", "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games", ', "Mario Kart Wii", "Mario Party 8", "My Pokémon Ranch", ', "Mario Strikers Charged", and "Guitar Hero 5", each player's Mii will serve as the character the player controls in some/all forms of gameplay. Miis can interact with other Wii users by showing up on their Wii consoles through the WiiConnect24 feature or by talking with other Miis created by Wii owners all over the world. This feature is called Mii Parade. Early-created Miis as well as those encountered in Mii Parades may show up as spectators in some games. Miis can be stored on Wii Remotes and taken to other Wii consoles. The Wii Remote can hold a maximum of 10 Miis.
In addition, Mii characters can be transferred from a user's Wii to Nintendo 3DS consoles, as well as supported Nintendo DS games via the Mii Channel. While in the channel, pressing A, followed by B, then 1, and holding 2 on the Wii Remote allows the user to unlock the feature. The Mii Channel is succeeded by the Mii Maker app for both Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, and the Mii options in Settings for Nintendo Switch.
According to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, over 160 million Mii characters had been created using the ‘’Mii Channel’’ as of May 2010.
Photo Channel.
If a user inserts an SD card into the console, or receives photos (JPEG) or videos (MJPEG) via email, they can be viewed using the "Photo Channel". The user can create a slideshow simply by inserting an SD card with photos and, optionally, MP3 or AAC files (see note regarding December 10, 2007 update to version 1.1). The Wii will automatically add Ken Burns Effect transitions between the photos and play either the music on the SD card or built-in music in the background. A built-in editor allows users to add markings and effects to their photos or videos (The edits float statically above the videos). Mosaics can also be created with this feature. Puzzles can be created from photos or videos with varying degrees of difficulty (However, your first puzzle will be six-pieces) with 6, 12, 24 and 48 piece puzzles available, with 192 selectable while holding down 1 on the Wii remote. Edited photos can be saved to the Wii and sent to other Wiis via the message board. According to the system's manual, the following file extensions (i.e. formats) are supported: Photos (jpeg/jpg), Movies (mov/avi), and Music (mp3/aac).
JPEG files can be up to 8192x8192 resolution and in baseline format. Video data contained within the .mov or .avi files must be in an OpenDML compliant MotionJPEG use some variant of this format for their videos. Photos, even high resolution ones, are compressed and decreased in resolution.
Photo Channel 1.1.
"Photo Channel 1.1" is an optional update to the "Photo Channel" that became available on the Wii Shop Channel on December 10, 2007. It allows users to customize the Photo Channel icon on the Wii Menu with photos from an SD Card or the Wii Message Board. It also allows playback of songs in random order. The update replaced MP3 support with support for MPEG-4 encoded audio files encoded with AAC in the .m4a extension.
Wii owners who updated to version 1.1 can revert to version 1.0 by deleting it from the channels menu in the data management setup. Consoles released after December 10, 2007 will come with the version 1.1 update pre-installed, and cannot be downgraded to version 1.0.
Owners of Japanese systems can download a "Revert to Photo Channel 1.0" Channel from the Wii Shop Channel if they wish to do so.
Wii Shop Channel.
The "Wii Shop Channel" allowed users to download games and other software by redeeming Wii Points, which could be obtained by purchasing Nintendo Points cards from retail outlets or directly through the "Wii Shop Channel" using MasterCard or Visa credit cards online. Users could browse in the Virtual Console, WiiWare, or Wii Channels sections for downloads. A feature to purchase downloaded software as gifts for others became available worldwide on December 10, 2007. Additional channels that were not released at the console's launch were available for purchase in the Wii Shop Channel. These included: Internet Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, Check Mii Out Channel, Nintendo Channel, Netflix Channel, and the Japan-only Television Friend Channel. Until the channel's shut down on January 30, 2019, all downloadable channels were free of charge.
Nintendo discontinued the Wii Shop Channel on January 30, 2019 (having announced that they planned to do so on September 29, 2017), with the purchase of Wii Points ending on March 26, 2018. The ability to redownload previously purchased content and/or transfer Wii data from the Wii to the Wii U still remains available.
Forecast Channel.
The "Forecast Channel" allowed weather reports and forecasts to be shown on the console from the Internet via the WiiConnect24 service. The "Forecast Channel" displayed a view of the Earth as a globe (courtesy of NASA), with which users can view weather in other regions. The user could also spin the globe. When fully zoomed out, an accurate star map was visible in the background. (The Big Dipper and the constellation Orion were easily recognizable, for example.) The "Forecast Channel" features included the current forecast, the UV index, today's overall forecast, tomorrow's forecast, a 5-day forecast (only for the selected country in which the user lives), and a laundry check (Japan only). The "Forecast Channel" first became available on December 19, 2006. Certain games like "Madden NFL 07", "", and "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games" could use the "Forecast Channel" to simulate weather conditions depending on the player's region.
There are slight variations of "Forecast Channel" versions in different regions. When viewing weather conditions in Japan, a different set of weather icons is used. Additionally, the laundry index was only featured in the Japanese version.
After the August 6, 2007 update, the "Forecast Channel" showed the icon for the current weather on the Wii Menu.
Long neglect of this channel would result in the icon not appearing, although the set time was longer than that of the News Channel.
The Forecast Channel (along with the News Channel) was not available in South Korea.
Like the four other Wii channels (News Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, Check Mii Out Channel/Mii Contest Channel, Nintendo Channel), the Forecast Channel ended its seven-year support on June 27, 2013.
News Channel.
The "News Channel" allowed users to access news headlines and current news events obtained from the Internet. News articles were available on a globe view, similar to the "Forecast Channel", and as a slide show. The content was automatically updated and viewable via WiiConnect24 with clickable news images supported.
The "News Channel" became available in North America, Europe, and Australia on January 26, 2007. Content was in a variety of languages provided by the Associated Press, who had a two-year contract to provide news and photos to Nintendo. Canadian news was submitted by the Canadian Press for publication. Japanese news was provided by Goo. European news was provided by Agence France-Presse.
Starting with the August 6, 2007 update, the "News Channel" showed a news ticker in the Wii Menu. However, not visiting the channel for a period of time resulted in the ticker not appearing, until the channel is viewed. A December 20, 2007 PAL region update increased the number of news feeds to the channel, sourced from a larger number of news resources and agencies, providing more news that were available per country.
The News Channel (along with the Forecast Channel) was not available in South Korea.
Like the four other Wii channels (Forecast Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, Check Mii Out Channel/Mii Contest Channel, Nintendo Channel), the News Channel ended its seven-year support on June 27, 2013.
Get Connected Video Channel.
The "Get Connected Video Channel" or "Wii & The Internet Channel" (or alternatively known as the "Wii + Internet Channel" or "Wii: See What You Can Do On the Internet") is installed to Wii console units manufactured in October 2008 or later. It contains an informational video specifying the benefits of connecting the Wii console to the Internet, such as downloading extra channels, new software, Virtual Console titles, and playing games over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.
The "Get Connected Video Channel" is the only pre-installed channel that takes up spare internal memory, and the only channel that can be manually deleted or moved to an SD Card by the user. The channel takes up 1,180 blocks of memory, which is over half the Wii's internal memory space. The large size of this channel is likely due to the fact it is available in multiple languages; three videos in the U.S. versions, and six videos in the PAL versions. Upon connecting to the Internet and running the channel, the user will be asked if they would like to delete it. It cannot be re-downloaded or restored upon deletion.
The same video presentation contained in the channel can also be viewed on an archived version of Nintendo's official website. Furthermore, several gaming stores such as GameStop had this channel in their Wii stations.
The channel is also available in multiple languages. Unlike the other channels, the video in the channel is not translated digitally, but is presented in multiple dubs, which means there are multiple copies of the same video in a single channel. The language of the video is presented is respectively according to the Wii's language setting. Available languages are English, French, and Spanish in the U.S. versions; and English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, and Dutch in the PAL version. The availability of multiple dubs is a likely factor that contributes to the large size of the channel.
Internet Channel.
The "Internet Channel" is a version of the Opera web browser for use on the Wii by Opera Software and Nintendo. On December 22, 2006 a free demo version (promoted as "Internet Channel: Trial Version") of the browser was released. The final version (promoted as "Internet Channel: Final Version") of the browser was released on April 11, 2007 and was free to download until June 30, 2007. After this deadline had passed, the "Internet Channel" cost 500 Wii Points to download. though users who downloaded the browser before June 30, 2007, could continue to use it at no cost for the lifetime of the Wii system. An update (promoted as the "Internet Channel") on October 10, 2007 added USB keyboard compatibility. On September 1, 2009 the Internet Channel was made available to Wii owners for no cost of Wii Points and updated to include improved Adobe Flash Player support. A refund was issued to those who paid for the channel in the form of one free NES game download worth 500 Wii Points.
The "Internet Channel" uses whichever connection is chosen in the Wii settings, and utilizes the user's internet connection directly; there is no third party network that traffic is being routed through. It receives a connection from a router/modem and uses a web browser to pull up HTTP and HTTPS (secure and encrypted) web pages. Opera, the Wii's web browser, is capable of rendering most web sites in the same manner as its desktop counterpart by using Opera's Medium Screen Rendering technology. For most Internet users, the Wii offers all of the functionality they need to perform the most common Internet tasks.
The software is saved to the Wii's 512 MB internal flash memory (it can be copied to an SD card after it has been downloaded). The temporary Internet files (maximum of 5MB for the trial version) can only be saved to the Wii's internal memory. The application launches within a few seconds, after connecting to the Internet through a wireless LAN using the built-in interface or a wired LAN by using the USB to the Ethernet adapter.
The Opera-based Wii browser allows users full access to the Internet and supports all the same web standards that are included in the desktop versions of Opera, including CSS and JavaScript. It is also possible for the browser to use technologies such as Ajax, SVG, RSS, and Adobe Flash Player 8 and limited support for Adobe Flash Player 9. Opera Software has indicated that the functionality will allow for third parties to create web applications specifically designed for the use on the Wii Browser, and it will support widgets, standalone web-based applications using Opera as an application platform.
Everybody Votes Channel.
"Everybody Votes Channel" allowed users to vote in simple opinion polls and compare and contrast opinions with those of friends, family, and people across the globe.
"Everybody Votes Channel" was launched on February 13, 2007, and was available in the Wii Channels section of the Wii Shop Channel. The application allowed Wii owners to vote on various questions using their Mii as a registered voter. Additionally, voters were also able to make predictions for the choice that will be the most popular overall after their own vote has been cast. Each Mii's voting and prediction record is tracked and voters can also view how their opinions compare to others. Whether the Mii is correct in its predictions or not is displayed on a statistics page along with a counter of how many times that Mii has voted. Up to six Miis would be registered to vote on the console. The channel was free to download. Each player would make a suggestion for a poll a day.
Like the other four Wii channels (Forecast Channel, News Channel, Nintendo Channel, Check Mii Out Channel/Mii Contest Channel), the Everybody Votes Channel ended its seven-year support on June 27, 2013 due to Nintendo shifting its resources to its next generation projects. Unlike the other discontinued channels, Everybody Votes Channel remains accessible with users able to view the latest poll data posted, albeit the channel will never be updated again.
Check Mii Out Channel.
The "Check Mii Out Channel" (also known as the "Mii Contest Channel in Australia and Europe") was a channel that allowed players to share their Miis and enter them into popularity contests. It was first available on November 11, 2007. It was available free to download from the Wii Channels section of the Wii Shop Channel.
Users would post their own Miis in the Posting Plaza, or import other user-submitted Miis to their own personal Mii Parade. Each submitted Mii was assigned a 12-digit entry number to aid in searching. Submitted Miis were given 2 initials by their creator and a notable skill/talent to aid in sorting.
In the Contests section, players submitted their own Miis to compete in contests to best fit a certain description (e.g. Mario without his cap). After the time period for sending a Mii had expired, the user had the choice of voting for three Miis featured on the judging panel, with ten random Miis being shown at a time. Once the judging period is over, the results of the contest may be viewed. Their selection and/or submission's popularity in comparison to others was displayed, as well as the winning Mii and user.
The Check Mii Out Channel sent messages to the Wii Message Board concerning recent contests. Participants in certain contests would add their user and submitted Mii to a photo with a background related to the contest theme. This picture would then be sent to the Wii Message Board.
This channel ended its seven-year support on June 27, 2013 like the four other channels (Forecast Channel, News Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, Nintendo Channel).
Nintendo Channel.
The "Nintendo Channel" (also known as the Everybody's Nintendo Channel in Japan) allowed Wii users to watch videos such as interviews, trailers, commercials, and even download demos for the Nintendo DS. The Nintendo Channel has the ability to support Nintendo Entertainment System games, Super NES games, Nintendo 64 games,and GameCube games. Later the channel was used for the Wii U, and the Nintendo Switch under the name of the Nintendo E-Shop. In this capacity the channel worked in a similar way to the DS Download Station. The channel provided games, info, pages and users could rate games that they have played. A search feature was also available to assist users in finding new games to try or buy. The channel had the ability to take the user directly into the Wii Shop Channel for buying the wanted game immediately. The Nintendo Channel was launched in Japan on November 27, 2007, in North America on May 7, 2008, and in Europe and Australia on May 30, 2008. The Nintendo Channel was updated with different Nintendo DS demos and new videos every week; the actual day of the week varies across different international regions.
An updated version of the Nintendo Channel was released in Japan on July 15, 2009, North America on September 14, 2009, and in Europe on December 15, 2009. The update introduced a new interface and additional features, options, and statistics for users to view. However, the European version was missing some of these new additional features, such as options for choosing video quality. In addition, a weekly show known as "Nintendo Week" began airing exclusively on the North American edition of the channel, while another show, "Nintendo TV", was available on the UK version of the channel.
The Nintendo Channel and the other 4 channels (Forecast Channel, News Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, Check Mii Out Channel/Mii Contest Channel) ended their seven-year support on June 27, 2013.
A few shows appeared on Nintendo Channel which were no more than 20 minutes long:
Nintendo Week
Nintendo Week was a show on the Nintendo Channel. The hosts were Gary and Allison, but other co-hosts appeared as well like Dark Gary, Daniel, and others.
Ultimate Wii Challenge/New Super Mario Bros. Wii Challenge
The hosts were David and Ben. They tried to beat each other's time in Nintendo Games like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and Kirby's Epic Yarn. In a few episodes, Ben and David worked together in levels of a few games.
Disconnection.
It was announced on April 12, 2013 that the Check Mii Out Channel would close permanently on June 27, 2013, as Nintendo terminated the WiiConnect24 service which these channels required, and shifted their resources to their next-generation projects.
Additional channels.
These channels are those that can be acquired through the usage of various games and accessories.
Wii Fit Channel.
"Wii Fit" allows users to install the "Wii Fit Channel" to the Wii Menu. The channel allows them to view and compare their results, and those of others, as well as their progress in the game, without requiring the game disc to be inserted.
The channel is essentially a stripped down version of "Wii Fit". It allows users to view statistics from the game including users' BMI measurements and balance test scores in the form of a line graph, as well as keep track of the various activities they have undertaken with a calendar. Users are also able to weigh themselves and do a BMI and balance test with the channel once per day. However, if the player wishes to do any exercises or play any of the aerobics games and/or balance games, the game prompts the user to insert the "Wii Fit" game disc.
Mario Kart Channel.
"Mario Kart Wii" allows players to install the "Mario Kart Channel" on their Wii console. The channel can work without inserting the "Mario Kart Wii" disc into the console, but to compete in races and time trials the disc is required. The use of the Mario Kart Channel allows for a number of options. A ranking option lets players see their best Time Trial scores for each track and compare their results to those of their friends and other players worldwide, represented by their Miis. Players will have the option of racing against the random or selective ghosts, or improving their results gradually by taking on the ghosts of rivals, those with similar race times. Users have the option to submit these times for others around the world to view. Players can also manage and register friends using the channel and see if any of them are currently online.
Another feature of the channel are Tournaments, where Nintendo invited players to challenges similar to the missions on "Mario Kart DS". Players were also able to compare their competition rankings with other players.
As of May 20, 2014, most features of the channel have been discontinued.
Jam with the Band Live Channel.
The Nintendo DS game "Jam with the Band" supports the "Jam with the Band Live Channel" (known as the "Speaker Channel" in Japan) that allows players to connect their game to a Wii console and let the game's audio be played through the channel. The channel supports multiple players.
Wii Speak Channel.
Users with the Wii Speak peripheral are able to access the "Wii Speak Channel". Users can join one of four rooms (with no limit to the number of people in each room) to chat with others online. Each user is represented by their own Mii, which lip-syncs to their words. In addition, users can also leave audio messages for other users by sending a message to their Wii Message Board. Users can also photo slideshows and comment on them. The Wii Speak Channel became available in North America and Europe on December 5, 2008, and was discontinued on May 20, 2014. The Wii Speak Channel is succeeded by Wii U Chat, which is standardized for the Wii U console.
Rabbids Channel.
A channel created by "Rabbids Go Home". When the game is started up for the first time or when the player goes to the player profile screen, the player may install the "Rabbids Channel", which will appear on the Wii Menu after downloaded. Players can use the channel to view other people's Rabbids and enter contests.
Downloadable channels.
Downloadable Channels are Channels that can be bought from the Wii Shop Channel.
Virtual Console Channels.
"Virtual Console" channels are channels that allow users to play their downloaded "Virtual Console" games obtained from the Wii Shop Channel. The "Virtual Console" portion of the Wii Shop Channel specializes in older software originally designed and released for home entertainment platforms that are now defunct. These games are played on the Wii through the emulation of the older hardware. The prices are generally the same in almost every region and are determined primarily by the software's original platform.
WiiWare Channels.
Functioning similarly to the "Virtual Console" channels, "WiiWare" channels allow users to use their WiiWare games obtained from the Wii Shop Channel. The WiiWare section specializes in downloadable software specifically designed for the Wii. The first WiiWare games were made available on March 25, 2008 in Japan. WiiWare games launched in North America on May 12, 2008, and launched in Europe and Australia on May 20, 2008.
The WiiWare section is being touted as a forum to provide developers with small budgets to release smaller-scale games without the investment and risk of creating a title to be sold at retail (somewhat similar to the Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Store). While actual games have been planned to appear in this section since its inception, there had been no official word on when any would be appearing until June 27, 2007, when Nintendo made an official confirmation in a press release which revealed the first titles would surface sometime in 2008. According to Nintendo, "The remarkable motion controls will give birth to fresh takes on established genres, as well as original ideas that currently exist only in developers' minds."
Like Virtual Console games, WiiWare games are purchased using Wii Points. Nintendo handles all pricing options for the downloadable games.
Television Friend Channel.
The "Television Friend Channel" allowed Wii users to check what programs are on the television. Content was provided by Guide Plus. It was developed by HAL Laboratory. The channel had been said to be "very fun and Nintendo-esque". A "stamp" feature allowed users to mark programs of interest with a Mii-themed stamp. If an e-mail address or mobile phone number would have been registered in the address book, the channel could send out an alert 30 minutes prior to the start of the selected program. The channel tracked the stamps of all Wii users and allowed users to rate programs on a five-star scale. Additionally, when the channel was active the Wii Remote could be used to change the TV's volume and channel so that users can tune into their shows by way of the channel. The Television Friend Channel launched in Japan on March 4, 2008, and was discontinued on July 24, 2011 due to the shutdown of analog television broadcasts in Japan. It was never launched outside Japan, as most countries, unlike Japan, have a guide built into set-top boxes and/or TVs. The Television Friend Channel was succeeded by the now-defunct Nintendo TVii, which was standardized for the Wii U console. It also had the Kirby 1-UP sound, since it was made by HAL Laboratory. This was later removed before the release of the channel.
Digicam Print Channel.
The "Digicam Print Channel" was a channel developed in collaboration with Fujifilm that allowed users to import their digital photos from an SD card and place them into templates for printable photo books and business cards through a software wizard. The user was also able to place their Mii on a business card. The completed design would then be sent online to Fujifilm who printed and delivered the completed product to the user. The processing of individual photos was also available.
The Digicam Print Channel became available from July 23, 2008 in Japan, and ceased operation on June 26, 2013.
Today and Tomorrow Channel.
The "Today and Tomorrow Channel" became available in Japan on December 2, 2008, and in Europe, Australia, and South Korea on September 9, 2009. The channel was developed in collaboration with Media Kobo and allows users to view fortunes for up to six Miis across five categories: love, work, study, communications, and money. The channel also features a compatibility test that compares two Miis, and also gives out "lucky words" that must be interpreted by the user. The channel uses Mii birthdate data, but users must input a birth year when they are loaded onto the channel. This channel was never released in North America, and although it was discontinued on January 30th, 2019 with the Wii Shop Channel discontinuation, it can still be redownloaded if obtained before the Wii Shop Channel's closure.
Wii no Ma.
A video on-demand service channel was released in Japan on May 1, 2009. The channel is a joint venture between Nintendo and Japanese advertising agency Dentsu. The channel's interface is built around a virtual living room, where up to 8 Miis can be registered and interact with each other. The virtual living room contains a TV which takes the viewer to the video list. Celebrity "concierge" Miis occasionally introduce special programming. Nintendo ceased operations of Wii no Ma on April 30, 2012.
Demae Channel or Food Delivery.
A food delivery service channel was released in Japan on May 26, 2009. The channel was a joint venture between Nintendo and Japanese on-line food delivery portal service Demae-can, and was developed by Denyu-sha. The channel offered a wide range of foods provided by different food delivery companies which can be ordered directly through the Wii channel. A note was posted to the Wii Message Board containing what had been ordered and the total price. The food was then delivered to the address the Wii user has registered on the channel. On February 22, 2017, Demae Channel was delisted from the Wii Shop Channel, it was later discontinued alongside the Wii U version on March 31, 2017.
BBC iPlayer Channel.
Wii access to the BBC iPlayer was interrupted on April 9, 2008, when an update to the Opera Browser turned out to be incompatible with the BBC iPlayer. The BBC chose not to make the BBC iPlayer compatible with the upgrade. This was resolved on November 18, 2009 when they released the "BBC iPlayer Channel", allowing easier access to the BBC iPlayer.
The BBC had since offered a free, dedicated Wii channel version of their BBC iPlayer application which is only available in the UK. By February 10, 2015, however, the channel was retired and consequently removed from Wii Shop Channel since newer versions are not compatible, and as per BBC's policy to retire older versions as a resource management. The channel had since been succeeded by the BBC iPlayer app on the UK edition of the Wii U eShop, which was released in May 2015.
Netflix Channel.
A channel released in the United States and Canada on October 18, 2010 and in the UK and Ireland on January 9, 2012. This channel allowed Netflix subscribers to use that service's "Watch Instantly" movie streaming service over the Wii with their regular Netflix subscription fee, and replaced the previous Wii "streaming disc" mailed to Netflix customers with Wii and PlayStation 3 consoles from February–October 2010 due to contractual limitations involving Xbox 360 exclusivity. The channel was free to download in the Wii Channels section of the Wii Shop Channel. The channel displayed roughly 12 unique categories of videos with exactly 75 video titles in each category. The TV category had many seasons of videos (i.e. 15–100 episodes) associated with each title. There were also categories for videos just watched, new releases, and videos recommended (based on the user's Netflix subscription history). On July 31, 2018, the ability to download the channel was discontinued; Netflix would drop support for the Wii on January 31, 2019.
LoveFilm Instant Channel.
As of 4 December 2012, a LoveFilm Instant channel was available to download in the UK; the channel was discontinued before the end of 2017.
Kirby TV Channel.
The Kirby TV Channel launched on June 23, 2011 in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and has since been discontinued. The channel allowed users to view episodes of the animated series "" for free. This channel was succeeded by the Nintendo Anime Channel, a Nintendo 3DS video-on-demand app, available in Japan and Europe, which streamed curated anime or anime-inspired shows, such as "Kirby: Right Back at Ya!"
Hulu Plus Channel.
Hulu Plus Channel was a channel for Wii, also as announced in Nintendo Updates on Nintendo Channel. Hulu Plus Channel included classic shows and other Hulu included shows. The channel launched in 2012, and was only available in the United States. As of January 30, 2019, the channel has been discontinued.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Save Data Update Channel.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Save Data Update Channel fixes an issue in the game . This title is the only Wii game to ever receive a downloadable, self-patching service, wherein previous titles with technical issues, such as "", required the game's owners experiencing said issues to send their Wii consoles to customer service where Nintendo had to manually fix such issues.
YouTube Channel.
The YouTube channel allowed the user to view YouTube videos on the television screen and had the ability to sign into an existing YouTube account. The YouTube channel, which became available without warning, is currently only available in the North American, UK, Japanese, and Australian versions of the Wii system, with the North American release on November 15, 2012, only three days before the Wii U was released in North America. Google planned to gradually make the channel available on Wii in other countries besides the aforementioned regions. The YouTube channel was initially categorized on the Wii Shop Channel as a "WiiWare" title by mistake, but this was later fixed when the Wii U Transfer Tool channel became available. On June 26, 2017, YouTube terminated legacy support for all devices that continue using the Flash-based YouTube app (typically found in most TV devices released before 2012), which includes the Wii.
Wii U Transfer Tool Channel.
This application became available on the Wii Shop Channel the day the Wii U was released per respective region. The only purpose of this channel is to assist transferring all eligible content out from a Wii console to a Wii U console, where the said content would be available via Wii Mode on the target Wii U. The application can transfer all available listed WiiWare titles (initially with the sole exemption of "LostWinds" for unknown reasons, but the game had since become available for both transfer to and purchase on Wii U since May 2014), all available listed Virtual Console titles, game save data, DLC data, Mii Channel data, Wii Shop Channel data (including Wii Points, conditional that accumulated total does not exceed 10,000 Wii Points on target Wii U), and Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection ID data to a target Wii U (albeit now moot since the service was discontinued in May 2014), but it cannot transfer Wii settings data, pre-installed WiiWare/Virtual Console titles (such as "Donkey Kong: Original Edition" that came pre-installed in the PAL version of the "Super Mario Bros." 25th Anniversary Wii bundle), any game or application software that had been since delisted from the Wii Shop Channel prior to the release of Wii U (such as the "Donkey Kong Country" trilogy), software that is already available on the target Wii U's Wii Mode, WiiConnect24-supported software and save data (which includes the 16-digit Wii console Friend Code), and Nintendo GameCube save data since the Wii U does not support the latter two. It is possible to move content from multiple Wii consoles to a single target Wii U console, as well as multiple transfers from a single Wii console if required, albeit the last Wii console's content will overwrite any similar Wii data transferred to target Wii U earlier. Due to technical limitations, the channel cannot directly transfer any eligible background data which has been saved on the console's SD card.
The Wii U Transfer Tool Channel features an animation based on the "Pikmin" series, wherein a visual transfer display of various Pikmin drones would automatically carry the eligible data and software to a Hocotate-based space ship bound for the Wii U. While context dynamic, this animation is not interactive, and only exists for entertainment purposes.
The ability to transfer content from the Wii to the Wii U will continue to be available for the foreseeable future post the Wii Shop Channel's shutdown on January 31, 2019.
Amazon Video.
Amazon Video, a video on demand service provided by Amazon.com, was released as a downloadable Wii channel in the United States in January 2013; the service was discontinued on January 30, 2019.
Crunchyroll.
In late 2014, Crunchyroll released their video app for the Wii's successor, Wii U, in North America. However, believing there are still many actively connected Wii consoles in its twilight years, Crunchyroll had surprised users with dedicated a Crunchyroll channel for Wii as well, launching the app categorized under "WiiWare" on October 15, 2015 in North America and the PAL regions. The Crunchyroll Wii channel currently only permits access to Premium account holders to the majority of the prime content. On May 5, 2017, less than 20 months after its launch, Crunchyroll ceased support for the Wii due to technical limitations after the service updated with new technology.
Wii Message Board.
The "Message Board" allows users to leave messages for friends, family members, or other users on a calendar-based message board. Users could also use WiiConnect24 to trade messages and pictures with other Wii owners, conventional email accounts (email pictures to console, but not pictures to email), and mobile phones (through text messages). Each Wii has an individual wii.com email account containing the Wii Number. Prior to trading messages it is necessary to add and approve contacts in the address book, although the person added will not get an automatic notification of the request, and must be notified by other means. The service also alerts all users of incoming game-related information.
Message Board was available for users to post messages that are available to other Wii users by usage of Wii Numbers with WiiConnect24. In addition to writing text, players can also include images from an SD card in the body of messages, as well as attaching a Mii to the message. Announcements of software updates and video game news are posted by Nintendo. The Message Board can be used for posting memos for oneself or for family members without going online. These messages could then be put on any day of the calendar. The Wii Message Board could also be updated automatically by a real-time game like "Animal Crossing".
"Wii Sports", "Wii Play", "Mario Kart Wii", "Wii Speak Channel", "Wii Sports Resort", "Super Mario Galaxy" & "Super Mario Galaxy 2" use the Message Board to update the player on any new high scores or gameplay advancements, such as medal placements in the former two titles, completions of races including a photo, audio messages, and letters from the Mailtoad via the Wii message board. ', "Super Mario Galaxy", "Super Smash Bros Brawl", "Elebits", ', "Dewy's Adventure" and the Virtual Console game "Pokémon Snap" allow players to take screenshots and post them to the Message Board to edit later or send to friends via messages. Except for Nintendo GameCube games, the Message Board also records the play history in the form of "Today's Accomplishments". This feature automatically records details of what games or applications were played and for how long. It cannot be deleted or hidden without formatting the console itself. Prior to its closure, the Nintendo Channel was able to automatically tally all Wii game play data from the Message Board and display them in an ordered list within the channel.
Subsequent system updates added a number of minor features to the Message Board, including minor aesthetic changes, USB keyboard support and the ability to receive Internet links from friends, which can be launched in the Internet Channel.
An exploit in the Wii Message Board can be used to homebrew a Wii via a tool called LetterBomb.
Discontinuation.
The WiiConnect24 service has been terminated as of June 27, 2013, completely ceasing the data exchange functionality of the Wii Message Board for all Wii consoles, whether as messages or game data. However, Nintendo is still able to continue sending some notification messages after that date to any continuously connected Wii consoles.
SD Card Menu.
The SD Card Menu is a feature made available with the release of Wii Menu version 4.0. This menu allows the user to run Virtual Console games, WiiWare games, and Wii Channels directly from the SD card, which makes it possible to free up the Wii's internal memory. Applications can be downloaded to the SD card directly from the Wii Shop Channel as well.
When running an application from the SD Card Menu, it is temporarily copied to the internal memory of the Wii, meaning the internal memory still must contain an amount of free blocks equal to the application's size. If the internal memory does not have enough space, the Channel will run an "Automanager" program, which clears up space for the user in one of many ways (selectable by the user).
The manager can place the largest channels on the user's Wii in the SD card, put smaller channels on the SD card until enough space remains to run the channel, clear channels from the left side of the Wii menu to the right side, or from the right side to the left until there are enough blocks to run the channel.
System updates and Parental Controls.
The Wii is capable of downloading updates to its core operating software. These updates may include additional features, patches/fixes, or support for newly released channels. When an update becomes available, Nintendo notifies users by sending a message to their console. Updates are included with certain Wii games, both requiring one to be fully updated in order to play and providing the update should one lack the necessary internet connection.
The Wii Menu also featured Parental Controls to restrict access to certain operations.