Warner Brothers' The Dark Knight tops the box office with a record $155.3 million, the biggest opening weekend on record and has the biggest one day box office record with Friday's $66.4 million. In second was Mamma Mia! with $27.6 million, the biggest debut for a musical on record. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. The Dark Knight, $155.3 million
2. Mamma Mia!, $27.6 million
3. Hancock, $14 million
4. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $11.9 million
5. Hellboy II: The Golden Army, $10 million
6. WALL-E, $9.8 million
7. Space Chimps, $7.4 million
8. Wanted, $5.1 million
9. Get Smart, $4.1 million
10. Kung Fu Panda, $1.8 million

There is a lot of buzz about Warner Brothers' The Dark Knight. Opening this weekend it is one of the year's most anticipated movies. It is being mentioned as having outstanding performances and incredible action scenes.

Heath Ledger's died earlier this year and there are lots of people wanting to see the deceased star's last movie role. What they and other movie goers will be astonished with is what is being talked about as Heath Ledger's best acting performance and possibly one of the best acting performances of the year. His character is disturbed and demented, nothing like the character depicted in previous productions that were campy. There is a lot of talk of Heath Ledger's character The Joker as being Oscar worthy.

The Oscar's usually skip films with a super hero tone to it, leaving them for best art and special effects categories. This year can be different as Heath Ledger is referred to giving a performance worthy of a best supporting actor.

Aaron Eckhart's character District Attorney Harvey Dent is also in the film giving another "face" to crime fighting. He adds a different element to the movie as D.A. that is hard on crime and carries a two headed coin (hhmmmm).

The Dark Knight has Christian Bale's as the crime stopper Batman and as millionaire Bruce Wayne. The movie is different from the first one that was about fear and was political. The Dark Knight has a focus on the duality of the good and evil between Batman and The Joker.

The Dark Knight will be one of the biggest movies of the summer. This movie has great performances and some great action scenes. A rare Oscar worthy super hero film that is sure to entertain.

(source: CNN.com)

Nintendo plans to release a music game for its Wii game console that is similar to Activision's "Guitar Hero". The new video game gives the gamer 60 different options of instruments and more.

Other music games like "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band" have had great success and it appears that the new game will be a great for the Wii and its controllers.

Games that need more physical activity to play like the Nintendo Wii games and games that need a special controller like a guitar for Sony's PS3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 are getting more attention from consumers.

The success of the Wii console is based on the free motion of the controllers. Instead of a control pad where a gamer uses his/her thumbs, the motion controllers or wands need to be maneuvered by a person's arms. Usually a person needs to move around to play the Nintendo Wii games instead of being in a motionless position.

With the new music game Wii gamers can play their instruments with the real motion of how the instruments are played. You can play air guitar with wands and an actual sound for instance.

The game is expected to be released this year.

(source: Reuters.com)

SABMiller merged with Molson Coors Brewing Company to create MillerCoors on July 1st and now InBev, the manufacturers of Beck's, Stella Artois and Bass and Anheuser-Busch are merging to create Anheuser-Busch InBev by the end of the year.

Who would have thought that the top three leading beer companies in the U.S. would be merging with either each other or with another company. Budweiser, Coors and Miller beers have been known as competitors with each other, trying to be the best beer in America. Miler and Coors separately are in the top four in beer sales in America and Anheuser-Busch's Bud Light and Budweiser are the top two respectfully.

SABMiller has a respectful history in brewing in America with established brewing factories in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1855. Molson Coors Brewing Company also has a respectful history in America with established brewing factories in Denver, Colorado in 1873. Each with unprecedented performance in its Industry as Brewing companies and as rivals and now there have merged to become MillerCoors a company with a lot of history in brewing in America.

Anheuser-Busch, established in St Louis, Missouri in 1860 has merged with Inbev, a brewing company established in Leuven, Belgium in 1366. The leading brewer in America with impeccable performance and an impeccable history has merged with the world's leading brewer with its own impeccable performance and impeccable history. The merger of ExxonMobile in 1999 created the largest oil company in the world and now Anheuser-Busch InBev will become the largest beer company in the world.

It's unbelievable that the top three beer brewers in America needed to merge with each other or another beer brewer. The U.S. market for beer is slowing down but is it at levels that necessitates mergers? I see the purpose of the MillerCoors' merger, to catch up with Anheuser-Busch in the U.S. market. Was it also a move based on Anheuser-Busch, InBev rumors back in June? Anheuser-Busch InBev began discussions of a merger in early June and just reached an agreement the merge recently. Was that merger based on just the U.S. market slowing down or was there something more to it?

These questions tend to be brought forward because based on the companies great histories and the popularity of the products they sell, there should not have been issue that necessitate merging. Do you think high gas prices are taking away from beer runs to the grocery store? It's hard to see Phillip Morris and Marlboro merging although it would not be surprising these days.

There is something to the difference of Budweiser, Miller and Coors. The beers have distinctiveness of their own and we know them to be from different companies. Now that gets muddled with these mergers, does that also muddle your desire for the top beers in the U.S.?

However you feel these mergers it is thought will most likely cut costs and stop competitive pricing for the consumer.

(source: MillerCoors.com and Anheuser-Busch.com)

Universal Pictures' Hellboy II: The Golden Army tops the box office with $35.9 million. Last weekend's top movie Hancock is in second with $33 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. Hellboy II: The Golden Army, $35.9 million
2. Hancock, $33 million
3. Journey to the Center of the Earth, $20.6 million
4. WALL-E, $18.5 million
5. Wanted, $11.6 million
6. Get Smart, $7.1 million
7. Meet Dave, $5.3 million
8. Kung Fu Panda, $4.3 million
9. Kit Kittredge: An American Girl, $2.4 million
10. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $2.3 million

Game publisher EA Sports will release "Madden '09" on August 12. Three weeks later EA Sports will release a 20th anniversary collector's edition of "Madden '09" that will feature a "NFL Head Coach" mode and a version of the classic "John Madden Football '93". The special edition will have exclusive videos like footage of athlete Brett Farve.



On the relsease date EA will host a concert featuring bands from the soundtrack. Maddenpalooza will also have a "Madden 09" game tournament.

Gamers that pre order the game will get a free iTunes gift card from Target for 10 free downloads when they release the game.

(source: Reuters/Billboard via Reuters.com and GameSpot.com)

Have you ever gotten tired of typing on a keyboard or mobile device and wondered if there was a better way to transfer your thoughts to your blog without cramping your hands and fingers? I have and I was wondering when voice recognition technology will be available that you can use anywhere, including your own cell phone.

I know that there is voice recognition technology that a person can use to create documents on their desktop or laptop but is there a technology that can transfer that data directly to a blog as a written blog post? You might be thinking that all you have to do is cut and paste it on to your blog, and there you go but what I’m wondering about is if there is an easier step to voice blogging like for instance a person can connect to their blog via a cell phone and speak their blog post directly and just hang up to publish a written blog post.

That would be great! Not just that, when that next great idea or topic runs through your head you can it talk directly to your blog with your cell phone without cramped wrists and thumbs after twiddling away at a keypad. Just a quick call with your cell phone and you can talk your blog post at any time or at any place where you can get a signal.

It would be the quickest way to blog because you would save time from the lack of keystrokes needed and it would a great way to update a blog. If you have any ideas about this or know of something like this please leave a comment.

Apple's new iPhone 3G has faster web browsing and a cheaper price tag. On sale this Friday the new iPhone 3G are priced at $199, $200 less that its predecessor that came out last year.

The iPhone 3G has new 2.0 software included, that is also free for iPhone users now. The new 2.0 software is an upgrade for the iPhone that gives the iPhone many new features capabilities.

Included in the 2.0 software is access to the Apple App Store where iPhone users can download the latest applications for their iPhone.

The 8-gigabyte phone will cost you $199 and the 16-gigabyte is priced at $299. The service plan is $69.99 a month at minimum and you get 450 minutes, unlimited data. The plan offers 200 text messages for an additional $5 a month.

The battery tends to drain more quickly on the iPhone 3G. This is from the 3G technology's need for more energy to run it. The battery is built into the iPhone so you can't easily remove it and replace it with a spare battery.

The iPhone has a GPS receiver built in that allows GPS navigation that is not turn-by-turn but is just as effective.

(source: MSNBC.com)

Google has created a site similar to the video game "The Sims" where you can create a virtual animated character and put it in settings and environments that are similar to real life.

At Lively.com you can sign up for free and you can interact with others with your animated characters. Like the site "Second Life", Lively.com offers the same virtual reality experience and can also be shared as an application on a site like Facebook.com and at Myspace.com soon.

Google said it will not sell advertising on the site but can be seen as something for web users to do in between their time searching for things online. Web users can discuss the site to talk about different products that are online that can indirectly lead to profits for the search engine giant.

The characters in Lively.com are human or human like and you can change things like their identity, emotional expressions and clothing. You can interact with your friends or family like in real life through a video game.

The settings are in different digital locations and time periods like Islands and The Wild West. Lively.com also has large-screen tv sets can play YouTube.com clips also.

Lively.com is a place to meet your Friends and family and a different way to communicate and interact with them.

(source: CNN Money.com)

In the compelling story between Microsoft and Yahoo that can merge the companies and bring Microsoft into a head to head confrontation with Google for Internet dominance, Microsoft announced that it is willing to talk to a new board at Yahoo for a deal. As more and more software applications for computers become available to use and download by Internet users it is of great importance that software giant Microsoft get a hold of the Internet market by acquiring Yahoo's second leading Internet search engine.

This is the big hype for the merger, as we know, that Yahoo's search engine's foundation with its performance and about 500 million users worldwide will bring Microsoft a quick, substantial presence in the Internet combined with its MSN Live.com search engine.

Google continues to command 60% of the search market but with Yahoo's 16.6%, Microsoft can close the gap and become a serious competitor to Google's search engine and can distribute its software from the Internet with its own search engine presence.

This is the incredible build up as the next step of the Information era leads us to easier downloading and usage of software directly on the web.

Microsoft mentioned that it would resume talks for a buyout of Yahoo if elects a new board at its next stock holders meeting on August 1st. Financier Carl Ichan, who owns 4% of Yahoo is leading the way to elect a new board that wants to get the merger deal completed.

Financier Carl Ichan is also conducting interviews to replace Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang and to replace Yahoo's management group.

Yahoo CEO Jerry Wang has mentioned that a deal with Microsoft is not likely. Yahoo rejected a $33 per share offer from Microsoft in initial talks, instead offering $37 per share which was not taken.

(source: Reuters.com)

Sony Pictures' Hancock tops the box office with $66 million. Hancock took in $100.4 million during Wednesday to Sunday's holiday weekend opening, and $107.3 million if including Tuesday night's preview. Last weekend's top movie WALL-E takes second with $33.4 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. Hancock, $66 million
2. WALL-E, $33.4 million
3. Wanted, $20.6 million
4. Get Smart, $11.1 million
5. Kung Fu Panda, $7.5 million
6. The Incredible Hulk, $5 million
7. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $3.9 million
8. Kit Kittredge: An American Girl, $3.6 million
9. Sex and the City, $2.3 million
10. You Don't Mess With the Zohan, $2 million

In one 24 hours span Mozilla's Firefox 3 web browser had 8 million software downloads, the most downloads ever when Firefox 3 debut, a new Guinness World Record. Firefox is an open source web browser that is free to download and has top of the line security and performance.

With Microsoft displaying its desire to expand its presence in the Internet by contemplating acquiring Internet search engine Yahoo and releasing its experimental Internet Explorer 8 web browser the record for most downloads is a big boost for Mozilla as its web browser continues to prosper.

The Firefox web browser's main competition in the web browser market is Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Apple's Safari browser.

Firefox is similar in performance and appearance to Internet Explorer and its security with processing downloads from the Internet and web site security is one of the best in the web browser market.

I use Firefox most of the time and I have not had security issues. After downloading there is a clear open or remove dialog box that refers to the download that was checked for viruses and security breaches.

For a free copy of Mozilla's Firefox click on the button in the sidebars.

(source: Reuters.com)

Fireworks for The Fourth of July cost a lot this year. Fireworks companies are facing hardships with costs in materials and transportation of goods. The price for some fireworks manufacturers have risen to up to 30% and since most of the warehouses are located in China there is an extra cost with transportation taxes.

Most of the fireworks business in America come from sales of small explosives such as whistlers and roman candles. The APA estimates Americans spend $930 million each year on fireworks, that has actually gone up from estimates of $610 million in 2000.

The fireworks shows on the Fourth of July are conducted by companies on the display side of the industry and estimate sales each year of about $15 million. The smaller fireworks companies are going through difficult times with rising costs and some of them are closing down.

Fireworks companies need to make subtle changes to the way shows are conducted. To do this companies are using cheaper explosives, changing the tempo of their shows and shortening the time of the programs.

(source: CNN Money.com)

For the past 300 years musicians and scientists could not uncover the mystery of the impeccable sound quality that the Stradivarius violin emits. The classical Cremonese violins resonate a sound that has not been able to be recreated in violins today.

Now a violin maker from Arkansas and a Dutch doctor have discovered the mystery of the Stradivarius sound. By using a computer program that calculates lung densities they were able to analyze the violin's physical properties.

They found the different densities of the wood effected the sound vibrations in the violins. They showed that the variation of density between Stradivarius violins were lesser than variations between Stradivarius violins and modern violins. A Stradivarius is made of maple and spruce wood that grew 300 years ago in Europe.

Although this was not a definitive proof of how the superior sound quality of a Stradivarius differs from a modern violin there is hope that this information could help in creating a modern violin that is similar to a Stradivarius.

(source: Reuters.com)

The markets are buzzing about talks being re-opened with Microsoft and Yahoo. It was reported by The Wall Street Journal that Microsoft is in search for partners to contribute to the purchase of Yahoo. These partners who could be News Corp.'s Myspace and Time Warner's AOL, it is speculated, would acquire some of Yahoo's many assets as Microsoft would secure Yahoo's top assets, its search engine business with other assets.

These talks come after Yahoo announced that discussions with Microsoft were over. Yahoo offered a deal for $33 or $34 per share to Microsoft in Mid-May. It was an offer that was not accepted before in previous talks by Yahoo and was not agreed upon by Microsoft. The final offer at $37 per share was later rejected by Microsoft also and Yahoo declared that talks were ended in Mid-June.

Yahoo also announced a deal with Google that would share advertising revenue. The deal included waiting until September to begin in order for antitrust officials time to investigate the deal. The wait was needed as The Washington Post reported a formal antitrust investigation has be opened by The U.S. Justice Department to see if this constricts competition between them.

Investigators will request documents from Google, Yahoo and other companies in the Internet industry during the investigation. Google and Yahoo are 1 and 2 in the search engine business and represent about 75% of market.

It's hard to believe that it has been one year of What is going on, blog. The blog has went through so much change since It's first publication a year ago. From a standard blogger template to it's new design WIGOB still brings you what is going on in news, tech, movies, music, gaming, blogs and opinions.

What is going on, blog started out as a news dispatch blog, providing links to computer, tech and Internet news. Now What is going on, blog brings you the weekend box office tallies, reviews of new music and video games, helpful tips about saving money and how to do things easier, news on space missions, the latest on science discoveries and not to mention bringing you breaking news in computer, technology and the Internet.

From the first post to now WIGOB continues to bring you what is going on. What is going on, blog is constantly improving in content, and additions like video casts, easy links to posts and social networking like Blogcatalog, MyBlogLog, Myspace, and Facebook.

For the next 365 days What is going on, blog will be linked to forums, What is going on, forums where you can talk about what is going on and more links will be added like social networking site Twitter.

What is going on, blog continues to be about being a blank canvas where the components of the blog speak for themselves. That's what is going on and thanks.

Disney/Pixars' WALL-E tops the box office with $62.5 million. This past weekend's other debut Wanted takes second with $51.1 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. WALL-E, $62.5 million
2. Wanted, $51.1 million
3. Get Smart, $20 million
4. Kung Fu Panda, $11.7 million
5. The Incredible Hulk, $9.2 million
6. The Love Guru, $5.4 million
7. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $5 million
8. The Happening, $3.9 million
9. Sex and the City, $3.8 million
10. You Don't Mess With the Zohan, $3.2 million

With summer about to get started we are planning trips, vacations and activities. That can be a handful in the wallet with rising gas prices and a need to stay hydrated when the heat turns up. A tip to keep your money in your wallet as much as possible is bottling your filtered tap water.

Some are bottling water right from the tap without a filter. But with contaminants that get through the water treatment from tap water and just the bad taste from water treated from the tap I recommend using a water filter item like Brita or Pur. Filtered water does make a difference when it comes to cleaner tasting water and filtered water doesn’t weight your body down like tap water can with its trace elements and trace metals.

Thing of the money you will save. A person needs to ingest 8 glasses of water a day to stay balanced and hydrated. Even if you don’t drink that much water every time you need water during the day it costs $1.00 to even $3.00 in some places to get replenished. That adds up and you can find yourself spending $30 or more on water each week. That’s money you can use for food, clothes, gifts, bus fares, train fares and especially at the gas pump and everyone can use that.

Just a one time purchase of a pitcher or a faucet filter for $34.99 - $49.99 and a purchase of filters that come in single replacements and packs of three to five for $8.99 - $39.99 and you can get filtered water from the tap for the entire summer.

This summer is going to be an expensive one. Except for value menus at fast food places nearly everything will drain your wallet so spend your money wisely, bottle your own filtered tap water and take it with you wherever you go.

Warner Bros. Pictures' Get Smart tops the box office with $39.2 million. Last weekend's top box office draw Kung Fu Panda takes second with $21.7 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. Get Smart, $39.2 million
2. Kung Fu Panda, $21.7 million
3. The Incredible Hulk, $21.6 million
4. The Love Guru, $14 million
5. The Happening, $10 million
6. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $8.4 million
7. You Don't Mess With the Zohan, $7.2 million
8. Sex and the City, $6.5 million
9. Iron Man, $4 million
10. The Strangers, $1.9 million

"Viva la Vida" or "Death and all his friends" is Coldplay's fourth album. Translated to English "Long Live Life" displays a new approach for the British group. The album is a departure from Coldplay's other three albums in depth and subject matter. The album itself plays with a build up from a slow melodic style and gripping content to a euphoric sound and matching lyrics then back down to a compelling, haunting sound. Sort of like a wave rising and crashing down on the shore from start to finish.

The lyrics themselves are some of the best from Coldplay. The track "Cemeteries of London" appears to be one of the best on the album with a piano playing to Chris Martin's voice. Other tracks that stand out are "Violent Hill" and "Lovers in Japan".

The sounds included in the album are unique and different. There are hints of North African-Middle Eastern and Latin elements with piano and guitar sounds that Coldplay brings. "Life In Technicolour" is a track that is instrumental, which is another different attribute to the album.

"Viva La Vida" appears to be in line for being one of the best albums from Coldplay even though some of the initial reviews have been mixed. The direction that the album went with is quiet refreshing and it is an interesting listen.

Universal Pictures' The Incredible Hulk tops the box office with $54.5 million. Last weekend's top box office draw Kung Fu Panda takes second with $34.3 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. The Incredible Hulk, $54.5 million
2. Kung Fu Panda, $34.3 million
3. The Happening, $30.5 million
4. You Don't Mess With the Zohan, $16.4 million
5. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $13.5 million
6. Sex and the City, $10.2 million
7. Iron Man, $5.1 million
8. The Strangers, $4.1 million
9. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, $3 million
10. What Happens in Vegas, $1.7 million

UPDATE: Yahoo and Google have agreed to begin their advertising partnership in September to give the govererment ample time to assess the deal. Microsoft and some comsumer-groups have indicated early that antitrust concerns could be claimed. There is speculation that chief executive Jerry Yang could still be on the hot seat with Yahoo Shareholders and board members for the Microsoft negotiations. Microsoft could be focusing on acquiring Facebook, Myspace and Salesforce.com.

Yahoo has ended all talks about being purchased by Microsoft, that more than likely ended any attempts of the software giant buying the Internet search engine.

Microsoft informed Yahoo that there will be no takeover attempt by the software maker. Stocks in Microsoft climbed to $28.24, an increase of $1.12.

It is expected that Yahoo and another search engine leader Google will announce an advertising partnership at the end of the day.

Yahoo sought $37 per share during previous negotiations while Microsoft offered $33 per share or $47.5 billion dollars.

After it was announced that talks were ended stocks in Yahoo closed at $23.52.

Check out the preview for IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey. It's a WWII flight simulator that has incredible graphics. Gaijin Entertainment and 1C plans to have IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey out on PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PSP and Nintendo DS. You will be able to choose from 50 missions that are set in The Battle of Britain, Stalingrad, Berlin, Sicily, and Korsun. Expect IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey to be available in 2009.

Paramount Pictures' Kung Fu Panda tops the box office for this past weekend with $60 million. In second is You Don't Mess With the Zohan with $40 million. Here is the rest of the top ten from this past weekend found on eonline:

1. Kung Fu Panda, $60 million
2. You Don't Mess With the Zohan, $40 million
3. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $22.8 million
4. Sex and the City, $21.3 million
5. The Strangers, $9.3 million
6. Iron Man, $7.5 million
7. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, $5.5 million
8. What Happens in Vegas, $3.4 million
9. Baby Mama, $779,090
10. Made of Honor, $775,000

Verizon Wireless has agreed to buy Alltel Corp. for a total of $28.1 billion dollars. The agreement was for $5.9 billion dollars and Verizon will assume $22.2 billion dollars in debt.

With Verizon’s 67.2 million subscribers and Alltel’s 13.2 million subscribers, Verizon will surpass AT&T in subscribers, which has 71.4 million subscribers making it the largest cellular carrier in the United States.

The transition will not be difficult as the Alltel has the same cellular carrier technology as Verizon. This will help Verizon Wireless make earnings quickly and the market agrees as shares of its parent company Verizon Communications and its partner Vodafone Group PLC rose on the news of the deal.

The deal will be closed at the end of the year which will also coincide with Verizon’s purchase of the vacated analog television signal which can be changed to wireless cellular communications.