On Monday December 6, 2004 there was a show on television that I tuned
in late to and didn't even notice what channel I was on. The show
ended at 8:00 in the evening. Pretty sure about this. It was a
documentary/reality program about a dotcom startup in the late 90's
that failed (but you probably guessed that, didn't you?) It was very
funny and I'd like to know the name of it and what channel I was
watching. I feel really silly asking you what channel I was watching,
but if you don't know the answer, nobody in the world does (and I
certainly don't). I'm not talking about the movie "startup dotcom" (or
something like that). This was reality. Real dudes are much more fun
than made up ones.

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Clarification of Question by beauregard-ga on 07 Dec 2004 07:11 PST

Forgot to tell you. They used the forbidden "F" word a lot, and unless
this was a broadcast channel really pushing the envelope, I was
watching a premium channel. HBO, SHO, CineMax, Starz. I don't have all
the premium channels, but I do have these four.

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Request for Question Clarification by juggler-ga on 07 Dec 2004 13:56 PST

Beauregard,

Do you remember any other details?  Individual names? Cities?  

Also, for what it's worth, Startup.com was actually a documentary.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0256408/

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Request for Question Clarification by markj-ga on 07 Dec 2004 14:14 PST

beauregard --

If you are a cable (as opposed to a satellite) subscriber, it might be
useful to know the name of the cable company and the market in which
the cable system operates.

markj-ga

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Clarification of Question by beauregard-ga on 07 Dec 2004 15:10 PST

Ah, yes, good idea. I'm a Comcast cable customer in the Detroit area.
I live in Berkley and the area may be identified as Southfield. Any of
these should work.

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Clarification of Question by beauregard-ga on 07 Dec 2004 15:12 PST

The name of the dotcom startup began with the letter "L" and had a "C"
in it. I really wish I had paid more attention, but there it is.

Beauregard,

I'm going to go out on limb here and say that the film you saw was
"Dot," a "mock" documentary about a company called Zectek.com.

It aired yesterday (December 6, 2004) on Showtime's "The Movie Channel Xtra."
http://www.sho.com/site/tmc/index.do?date=12/6/2004&channel=TM2&feed=East
"This satirical mockumentary chronicles the rise and fall of a
fictional Internet start-up company called Zectek.com, a doomed
enterprise that proves a rich breeding ground for examining the comic
foibles of big business. Simeon Schnapper, Steve Walker, Michael
Mazzarra, Jamie McMillian, Katherine Ripley and Mathew O'Neil star in
the feature-film debut of Chicago comedy troupe Sneaky Kings."
http://www.sho.com/site/tmc/movie.do?episodeid=120002&seriesid=0

Now, the 3:20 pm starting time listed is not consistent with your
recollection of the film ending at 8 pm.  I can't explain that. Maybe
your cable provides you with the west coast feed of that channel, in
which case the film would have been ending around 8 pm your local
time?

More about "Dot" at Sneakykings.com
http://www.sneakykings.com/dotcom/
View clips at:
http://www.sneakykings.com/dotcom/trailerselect.htm


------------
search strategy:
A yahoo tv schedule search for "dot com" indicated that "Dot" was
airing on The Movie Channel Xtra next week.  I checked The Movie
Channel Xtra's site and discovered that the film has also been
televised yesterday.

I hope "Dot" is the right film.  Or if we're in another situation like
we were with "Brood of Eagles," please let me know and I'll go back to
the drawing board. Thanks.

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Clarification of Answer by juggler-ga on 07 Dec 2004 16:45 PST

I notice if I select the "west" feed, it indicates that movie was
starting at 6:20pm.
http://www.sho.com/site/tmc/index.do?date=12/6/2004&channel=TM2&feed=West

Given the 1 hour 33 minute length, that means "Dot" would indeed have
ended at 8 pm yesterday.

juggler: You've done it. I'm awestruck. My but you've earned your keep
(and more) this day. I will sleep tonight.

As far as I can tell, Comcast doesn't publish online a program
schedule for your cable system.  Hoever, I have checked yesterday's
national or regional schedule of each of the pay networks that you
mentioned (and more), but I haven't found a likely candidate.  Very
frustrating.  Maybe another researcher will have better luck.

markj-ga

I think juggler-ga has got it.  I don't know if this link will work
for you, but it confirms that The Movie Channel Extra (West) is
carried on channel 353 by the Comcast system serving Southfield:

http://www.comcast.com/Support/ChannelGuide.ashx?LinkID=102

(I guess I gave up too soon.)

markj-ga

Beauregard:
Thank you very much for the tip.

And thanks also to Mark for confirming that The Movie Channel Extra
(West) is carried by Comcast in Southfield.

-juggler