North America Haruhi site updated
The mysterious Haruhi website has been updated. Don’t see any changes? Look at the source code.
Read on for the details.
The DOCTYPE declaration has been taken off. The original DOCTYPE was !DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN".
People were speculating that Funimation was the one who licensed Haruhi because the DOCTYPE matches the one used on their website. It seems that whoever licensed Haruhi wanted to kill this rumour, since it’s kind of weird for someone to remove a working DOCTYPE for no reason (the site is valid HTML 4.01 according to W3C).
The hidden text in the source code has also been changed to 「北米計画が発効した。」, or “the North American project has been launched.” I think this pretty much confirms it 100% that Haruhi is licensed.
If the DOCTYPE was really removed because of the rumours, then this pretty much rules out Funimation as the mysterious company. Plus the fact that all the “in-jokes” are being done in Japanese, it leads me to believe that the licensing company has to be Kadokawa Pictures USA (which currently only has FMP! TSR under its belt).
Haruhi.tv has also been updated with an escape program from YUKI.N. Looks like season two announcement is coming soon.
Whatever the case is, you can hear my wallet dreading the future. ＿|￣|O
December 21st, 2006 at 1:43 am
I can feel my pockets emptying out right now. XD
December 21st, 2006 at 1:48 am
> People were speculating that Funimation was the one who licensed Haruhi
> because the DOCTYPE matches the one used on their website
And millions of others.
Lol internets. The stupid, it burns.
Also, a removal surely would be more indicative of an admission than it being someone else?
December 21st, 2006 at 2:02 am
>>And millions of others.
>>Lol internets. The stupid, it burns.
>>Also, a removal surely would be more indicative of an admission than it being someone else?
The point at the time was that ADV doesn’t. They have:
December 21st, 2006 at 2:03 am
…I should have guessed that it wouldn’t show up…
!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC “-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN” “http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd”
December 21st, 2006 at 3:21 am
How does removing the DOCTYPE prove that Haruhi has been licensed? It doesn’t mean a thing.
December 21st, 2006 at 4:02 am
Also, did we do this “Haruhi is licensed” dance before?
December 21st, 2006 at 4:37 am
Haruhi at Gaza was the finale for the Haruhi Time Capsule Project. It’s really a shame that the Middle Eastern Haruhists are a month late.
December 21st, 2006 at 5:23 am
scottfrye: There’s a tendency from certain quarters to massively jump the gun when it comes to anything Haruhi-related, it’s true!
Today, however, you’re way off base. The question is who licensed it, with Miao noting that Funimation uses the exact same DOCTYPE, and ADV for one doesn’t.
He also notes that this doesn’t prove a thing.
The question, by the way, is not whether Haruhi is licensed. This is established fact, with animenewsnetwork.com and animeondvd.com confirming that they’ve been paid to run advertising. What they have not said, however, is who is paying them.
December 21st, 2006 at 5:30 am
>>How does removing the DOCTYPE prove that Haruhi has been licensed? It doesn’t mean a thing.
It doesn’t. Before it was removed, people were using it to connect the website to Funimation, who uses the same doctype, and at the same time adding doubt to the possibility that ADV licensed it, as they use a different one. The fact that they removed it adds suspicion.
December 21st, 2006 at 6:06 am
License and sequel are two words I like hearing about SHnY.
December 21st, 2006 at 7:10 am
So will the second season be Shoushitsu?
December 21st, 2006 at 7:12 am
I can hear my wallet crying too. Argh, imports, they cost way too much. Maybe I should just wait another 10 years for the whole series to be released or something xP But the goodies…
My safe bet right now would be to burn my wallet altogether.
December 21st, 2006 at 7:34 am
seems like the mystery company is none other than kadogawa usa
kudos to 0__o from #sos-dan pointing it out ,
http://asosbrigade.com//
December 21st, 2006 at 7:47 am
waffo: License and sequel are two words I like hearing about SHnY.
I get the warm fuzzy feeling we’ll be hearing both come 12-22. While I don’t see why the DOCTYPE changing has any bearing on who licensed it (as the site owner, whether FUNimation or not, has legitimate reason to change it if people start assuming it is FUNimation), I do think that the fact that both the new NA Haruhi site and haruhi.tv both seem to be counting down to something makes it more likely that Kadokawa Pictures USA is the NA licensor.
First, the haruhi.tv site wouldn’t likely be promoting the R1 DVD release, so it is most likely promoting the upcoming official S2 announcement. Likewise, asosbrigade.com, whoever owns them, wouldn’t likely be promoting S2, and we know from AOD and ANN that it has been licensed, so it seems obvious that the site will promote the R1 release.
Second, the timing of these two incidents cannot be coincidence. Yes, they both might be tying into events in book 4, as haruhi.tv blatantly is (to the point now of posting actual excerpts on the site, if my guess at what YUKI_N is typing is correct), but in situations like this, the primary license holder (KyoAni and Kadokawa Japan, promoting S2) is more likely to stop the secondary license holder (whoever is releasing the R1 DVDs) from using a similar markting ploy, to keep them from stepping on their toes, or diluting the marketing focus, or whatever they want to call it. While it’s possible that Kadokawa doesn’t give a crap how whoever promotes it in NA (not likely, considering how they handled FMP:TSR), or that the two companies are working together, it’s most likely that someone is pulling both sets of strings, and that means Kadokawa, who has a presence on both sides of the ocean, and would already be affiliated with S2.
December 21st, 2006 at 10:16 am
scottfrye: As Vinland said, someone had to pay AoD and ANN for the advertisements. That plus the line “the North American project has been launched.” in the source code.
It can’t be a prank because it’d be seriously stupid for someone to pay AoD and ANN for a prank. Not to mention that it’s illegal to misrepresent trademarks that don’t belong to you.
Anyway, DOCTYPE alone obviously doesn’t prove anything. But the fact was that Funimation was the only one that used HTML 4.01 declared in that way. Anime companies make so many websites that I’m sure they have their own designing team and they are probably used to doing things in a certain way.
I think there shouldn’t be any reason for the DOCTYPE to be removed if Funimation really was the mysterious company.
I’m praying that it’s not Funimation actually, since I do intend on getting the R1 release too. ORZ
December 21st, 2006 at 11:08 am
>>>I’m praying that it’s not Funimation actually, since I do intend on getting the R1 release too. ORZ
You mean you can already smell your wallet burning.
December 21st, 2006 at 12:14 pm
:V
At least there’s no chance of Kadokawa USA screwing it up :V
December 21st, 2006 at 12:46 pm
BTW it’s been confirmed that it’s Kadokawa Pictures USA. And dovac (the webmaster) has sold off sos-dan.com/org/net domains.
December 21st, 2006 at 1:12 pm
Forgot to mention. They changed the commented text again.
For some reason, it’s 電脳統合思念体 instead of 情報統合思念体…
December 21st, 2006 at 1:31 pm
thx for translating…maybe they remove the DOCTYPE thing is because they got caught by fans and somehow they knew it could be accessed to their licencer’s site….as some ppl had done so..so…it ends up to camping in front of the computer in 12am tonite(not sure the timezone etc…) but try…if in Super north american timing, it would be around tml afternoon 12pm le…hiaz..
December 21st, 2006 at 1:32 pm
the onli thing i get when i go http://asosbrigade.com/404.html is:
“WARNING
Your action has created a 404 Error in the space-time continuum.”
December 21st, 2006 at 1:40 pm
It looks like it will be 12AM Eastern, as that’s what time they updated the site just now.
December 21st, 2006 at 4:57 pm
Haruhi.tv is now back online.
December 21st, 2006 at 5:19 pm
it seems that http://www.haruhi.tv change( or not) maybe due to the release of the album….hm…God knows…..
December 21st, 2006 at 5:28 pm
I’ll bet dovac must be giggling like a little girl at his bank statement.
December 21st, 2006 at 5:56 pm
The commented line on asosbrigade has changed yet again.
ワクワクしてきた！
December 21st, 2006 at 6:31 pm
Isn’t that the same doctype used on other sites?
December 21st, 2006 at 9:32 pm
interesting!
December 22nd, 2006 at 5:42 am
Kadokawa Pictures USA doesn’t have their own website…?
December 22nd, 2006 at 1:17 pm
Commented text changed.
Looks like the timezone is not US East Coast.
December 22nd, 2006 at 1:50 pm
By the Empress’ Immortal Will, we will soon commence the invasion of Britannia. We will not rest until the flag of Haruhiism is raised over the blasted remains of the country, and the False Emperor of Britannia is casted down and trampled beneath our army!
The Empress protects. SIEG HARUHIISM!
December 22nd, 2006 at 2:09 pm
Updated yet again. We are almost there.
December 22nd, 2006 at 2:23 pm
It’s the Pacific time zone, probably. At the most it should be 4 PM.
December 22nd, 2006 at 3:03 pm
LOL new messages. LOL.
December 22nd, 2006 at 3:40 pm
Updated. Again.
December 22nd, 2006 at 4:04 pm
December 22nd, 2006 at 4:09 pm
December 22nd, 2006 at 4:12 pm
Lawl fansite.
Now let’s hope for sequel.
December 22nd, 2006 at 4:18 pm
Wait, no.
Bandai?
December 25th, 2006 at 4:25 pm
Site updated for voicing. XD @ English versions