Computers and vacuum tubes go together like Trent Lott and flyaway hair, right? The last time filaments glowed in computers was during the 1960s, when a computer was a building. I remember laughing at the ponytailed computer-science dweebs back then, who spent their college days playing nursemaid to a football field's worth of electronics capable of little more than adding two plus two. Chained to a computer half the day, as most of us now are, guess who had the last laugh?

<B>COLDPLAY: <I>A Rush of Blood to the Head</I></B><BR> Capitol 5 40504 2 (CD). 2002. Coldplay, Ken Nelson, prods.; Mark Phythian, Ken Phythian, engs.; Rik Simpson, Jon Withnal, Ben Thackeray, Jon Bailey, Andrea Wright, asst. engs. AAD? TT: 54:14<BR> Performance <B>****&#189;</B><BR> Sonics <B>****</B>

"Suicide junctions," I calls 'em. The ones with which I'm most familiar are on I-278, just north of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in Brooklyn, New York, and along North Mopac in Austin, Texas, but they must exist all over the US. Traffic about to enter the freeway must first cross the line of faster-traveling offcoming cars, the intersection's on- and off-ramps crossing in a shallow <B>X</B>.

John Atkinson and Stephen Mejias tally the writer and editor votes to present "<A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//features/724/">The 2002 Products of the Year</A>." As JA comments, "For more than a decade now, <I>Stereophile</I> has recognized components that have proved capable of giving musical pleasure beyond the formal review period."

You thought it was crowded last year? The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced last week that, as of the beginning of December, it looks like the <A HREF="http://www.CESweb.org">2003 International Consumer Electronics Show</A> (CES) will feature a record-breaking amount of exhibit space, surpassing 1.2 million square feet.

<A HREF="http://www.gateway.com">Gateway Computer</A> appears intent on expanding into the home entertainment arena.

Singer Sam Moore has won a protracted lawsuit brought against retirement fund trustees of the <A HREF=http:"//www.aftra.com">American Federation of Television and Radio Artists</A> (AFTRA). The settlement of the nine-year-old case was announced in an Atlanta federal court on Wednesday, December 5.

As tighter restrictions on the use of both audio and video digital content <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11393/">loom in the legislature</A>, the <A HREF="http://www.hrrc.org">Home Recording Rights Coalition</A> (HRRC) and the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) have teamed up to counter the ever-increasing demands from copyright holders. The HRRC, founded in 1981, is a leading advocacy group for consumers' rights to use home electronics products for private, non-commercial purposes.

For more than a decade now, <I>Stereophile</I> has recognized components that have proved capable of giving musical pleasure beyond the formal review period by naming its "Products of the Year."