Yeah, you've seen an awful lot of Super Bowl XLII talk 'round these parts over the past few days, but considering that it's probably the biggest sporting spectacle in all of America, we suppose it makes sense to get everything absolutely perfect for gameday. Sound & Vision has an interesting writeup that details the dos and don'ts for throwing a shindig that will leave guests in awe, and while having the right equipment most certainly plays a part, using that DVR judiciously and ensuring that seating is setup so that all guests can view the screen satisfactorily also makes a huge difference. Hit up the read link below for the rundown -- you can never be too thorough, right?

[Image courtesy of NY Times]

Whilst many may be aware of the strong reputation that churches hold for repeatedly pulling off successful annual gatherings, a recent letter sent by the NFL to the Fall Creek Baptist Church suggests that this particular organization isn't quite so clued in. The letter, which caused the church in question to cancel a planned "Super Bowl Party" sparked a litany of other cancellations by churches scared of attracting the wrath of the league. The NFL has subsequently attempted to rectify the situation it got itself into -- some would argue the sports equivalent of "cancelling Christmas" -- by stating that their original claim was that churches could display the game, as long as they didn't charge for entry, or display the game on anything other than "a television of the type commonly used at home": in the case of the kitted out Fall Creek Baptist Church, they were hoping to broadcast the game on a TV measuring more than a divine 55-inches diagonally. Unfortunately for the groups that arranged and then subsequently cancelled their parties, it's a little too late to re-advertise. Fortunately, God's omnipresence comes in handy for these sort of screw-ups, so the solution for watching the game at home with the ultimate authority is as simple as leaving a space on the couch. Whether or not he digs your set is an entirely different matter, and one that's entirely down to thickness of your wallet.

[Via Tom's Hardware]

C'mon folks, everyone and their grandmother will likely be watching the Super Bowl this coming Sunday (even across the pond), and even if you have no interest in the Colts, Bears, or large men in awkward suits, someone in your family probably feels otherwise. Nevertheless, the NFL showcased its mighty power (and terrible decision making) by condemning Fall Creek Baptist Church's "Super Bowl Bash," saying that advertising a fee-based party that utilized "license-protected words" was against regulations. Furthermore, ditching the door charge and the taboo language wasn't good enough to solve the problem, as "the law" limits Super Bowl (wait, can we say that now?) party TVs to a quantity of one, and that single set must not be over 55-inches. Needless to say, we don't doubt that good few of you fine, law-abiding, tax-paying citizens will be catching the big game with a couple of your friends on your 60-inch plasma (or 100-inch projection screen), but we'd highly recommend building an underground bunker between now and Sunday to make sure your plans are safe. Of course, bars and other eateries are somehow exempt from this bogus rule, and as expected, all the grumbling stems from Nielsen's obvious inability to estimate just how many folks are watching a single tube on this advertisers' dream night, but ratings drops or not, we wouldn't mess with Touchdown Jesus.

Unsurprisingly, surveys these days can often have very interesting results, which may not necessarily represent the general population in a factual manner, but nonetheless, if the "Big Game Survey" is to be believed, more people would rather watch the Super Bowl on an HDTV than actually going to the event in-person. Conducted on behalf of Circuit City, the survey found that 48-percent of all respondents would rather catch the big game from the comforts of their couch compared to just 26-percent who would rather cheer from the nosebleed seats. While it wasn't directly stated where the other 26-percent fell, we can only assume that those were the folks who'd rather pressure-wash their entire house than suffer through four hours of non-stop partying over a game of pigskin. Nevertheless, it's certainly not a surprise to find that sports offerings glue Americans to their couches like no other type of programming can, and the survey also found that around 60-percent of men (and 49-percent of women) were more likely to throw down for an HD set solely because of the Super Bowl (and hosting a subsequent party). While we'd probably have no qualms accepting an all-expenses-paid trip to see the biggest NFL game of the year, we have to assume that folks were taking total cost into account when answering the questions, and considering the dough you'd likely lay down just to get a seat for this primetime event, wouldn't you rather bring home a svelte HDTV instead?

If you're incensed about wasting your weekend (and part of last week) cruising around in futility trying to locate a Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii, the GamerBUS can provide the ultimate painkiller -- provided you live around the Virginia Beach area, that is. If you've got 63 friends or so, and you're not claustrophobic, you can pack your posse into the 37-foot customized RV and get your game(s) on. Sporting a bevy of comfortable seating options, sixteen Xbox 360 "gamer stations" (pictured after the jump) with their own 23-inch Philips HDTV, and all the CAT5 cable / electricity you could ever need, this redefines the party on wheels. Essentially offering a mobile gaming LAN, the bus operators will gladly wire up a 16-person system-linked round of Halo 2 (or a variety of other titles) while you provide the Cheetos and air fresheners. Although weekday hours boast an understandable discount, weekend rates range from $125 to $150 per hour, depending on how long you occupy the vehicle. Notably, no connection has been drawn between this newfangled gaming service and the Va Beach entrepreneur trickster hitting it big on vulnerable ATMs.

[Via Digg]