Movie Tome
Encyclopedia
Movie Tome was the sister site for TV Tome
, now the CNET website TV.com
. Whereas TV Tome had TV shows and people pages, Movie Tome had movie guides. The website was created no later than August 2003 (the earliest archive) by John Nestoriak III, and was owned by Collaborative Content, LLC which was acquired by CNET
in January 2005. Nestoriak continued to manage the site until early 2007, however. Movie Tome had six general forums in addition to a forum for each movie. The forums were About Movie Tome, In Theaters, On Video, In The Art House, Classic Movies and The Movie Industry.
Each movie information page at Movie Tome included cast, crew, synopsis, notes, quotes, goofs, links, and a forum for discussion of the movie. There was also the ability to rate a movie from 1 to 10, the average vote being displayed on the left side of the guide, as well a link to reviews for the movie. Titles were added by users, and an individual user could request data manager status for titles he/she was interested in preserving from error or vandalism. The majority of titles on the site were of recent vintage, however, with a wide smattering of pre-2000 titles, largely American.
All members of TV Tome were also members of Movie Tome. They retained their membership at Movie Tome when TV Tome was converted into TV.com. Generally, the editing/submission format was exactly the same as the original TV Tome. However, the site eventually showed interest only in new releases; submitted new titles for older films, even with an offer to serve as editor, were ignored by Mr. Nestoriak..
to TV.com and probably in the same trend as GameSpot.com). The Movie Tome domain was permanently redirected to the new site on January 10, 2007. FilmSpot is a sister site to TV.com
, GameSpot
, and MP3.com
. On November 14, 2007, the website name was reverted to MovieTome, after it was discovered that "MovieSpot" was already a registered domain name of MGM
.
Since the 2006 operational takeover by CNET, the site had been in "beta stage". No information was provided as to how long this stage would last, but all user activities had therewith been frozen. Users may have accessed information already on the site as of the end of 2006, but could add nothing. Even the "Community Forums" were locked, and, unlike other user-driven sections, could not be accessed beyond an index of the forums in operation at the time of the CNET operational takeover. Registered users from the original Movie Tome were still carried, but could not even add to their own profiles. A message at the bottom of each user-specific page claimed that the user was "in a pending, suspended or banned status". This was not further explained. There were no instructions on how to use the site, e.g. that to search for a movie, you had to enter the title in all lower-case letters, each word in the title connected by a _ .
No "Contact Information" was provided for the site and there is no page identifying any of the site staff.
As of November 29, 2010, all MovieTome URLs automatically redirect to the Movies section of Metacritic
. The reason for this is currently unknown, although the site was possibly closed down for lack of visitors.
's average score. The score was based on a 5-star system, similar to other movie review sites.
MovieTome staff had made small reviews of movies on their "In Focus" section, but they were not given a score and were not listed on the movie's page, so the reviews were not considered official.
TV Tome
TV Tome was a U.S. based website devoted to informational guides for English-language television shows and the people involved in their production. It was run mainly by volunteer editors, with the assistance of user contributions...
, now the CNET website TV.com
TV.com
TV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...
. Whereas TV Tome had TV shows and people pages, Movie Tome had movie guides. The website was created no later than August 2003 (the earliest archive) by John Nestoriak III, and was owned by Collaborative Content, LLC which was acquired by CNET
CNET
CNET is a tech media website that publishes news articles, blogs, and podcasts on technology and consumer electronics. Originally founded in 1994 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie, it was the flagship brand of CNET Networks and became a brand of CBS Interactive through CNET Networks' acquisition...
in January 2005. Nestoriak continued to manage the site until early 2007, however. Movie Tome had six general forums in addition to a forum for each movie. The forums were About Movie Tome, In Theaters, On Video, In The Art House, Classic Movies and The Movie Industry.
Each movie information page at Movie Tome included cast, crew, synopsis, notes, quotes, goofs, links, and a forum for discussion of the movie. There was also the ability to rate a movie from 1 to 10, the average vote being displayed on the left side of the guide, as well a link to reviews for the movie. Titles were added by users, and an individual user could request data manager status for titles he/she was interested in preserving from error or vandalism. The majority of titles on the site were of recent vintage, however, with a wide smattering of pre-2000 titles, largely American.
All members of TV Tome were also members of Movie Tome. They retained their membership at Movie Tome when TV Tome was converted into TV.com. Generally, the editing/submission format was exactly the same as the original TV Tome. However, the site eventually showed interest only in new releases; submitted new titles for older films, even with an offer to serve as editor, were ignored by Mr. Nestoriak..
The New MovieTome
On December 7, 2006, CNET launched a new version of the site, changing the name to FilmSpot.com (similar to the conversion of TV TomeTV Tome
TV Tome was a U.S. based website devoted to informational guides for English-language television shows and the people involved in their production. It was run mainly by volunteer editors, with the assistance of user contributions...
to TV.com and probably in the same trend as GameSpot.com). The Movie Tome domain was permanently redirected to the new site on January 10, 2007. FilmSpot is a sister site to TV.com
TV.com
TV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...
, GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
, and MP3.com
MP3.com
MP3.com is a web site operated by CNET Networks providing information about digital music and artists, songs, services, community, and technologies. It is probably better known for its original incarnation, as a legal, free music-sharing service, popular with independent musicians for promoting...
. On November 14, 2007, the website name was reverted to MovieTome, after it was discovered that "MovieSpot" was already a registered domain name of MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
.
Since the 2006 operational takeover by CNET, the site had been in "beta stage". No information was provided as to how long this stage would last, but all user activities had therewith been frozen. Users may have accessed information already on the site as of the end of 2006, but could add nothing. Even the "Community Forums" were locked, and, unlike other user-driven sections, could not be accessed beyond an index of the forums in operation at the time of the CNET operational takeover. Registered users from the original Movie Tome were still carried, but could not even add to their own profiles. A message at the bottom of each user-specific page claimed that the user was "in a pending, suspended or banned status". This was not further explained. There were no instructions on how to use the site, e.g. that to search for a movie, you had to enter the title in all lower-case letters, each word in the title connected by a _ .
No "Contact Information" was provided for the site and there is no page identifying any of the site staff.
As of November 29, 2010, all MovieTome URLs automatically redirect to the Movies section of Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. The reason for this is currently unknown, although the site was possibly closed down for lack of visitors.
Rating system
As it was still in the beta stage, MovieTome had yet to offer its own reviews; however, they used MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
's average score. The score was based on a 5-star system, similar to other movie review sites.
MovieTome staff had made small reviews of movies on their "In Focus" section, but they were not given a score and were not listed on the movie's page, so the reviews were not considered official.
External links
- Archived versions of Movie Tome at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
- MovieTome, the successor to Movie Tome (Redirects to Metacritic's movie page)