Some airlines are cutting back on the peanuts; others are giving you a reason to bring your own popcorn.

Cathy Lu, Digital World Contributing News Editor

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

According to Jack Evans, spokesperson for the Air Transport Association, ``Airlines are trying to differentiate their services. Some do it by the type of in-flight entertainment they offer; some do it by meal plans.``

That got me thinking about what airlines are doing to keep passengers entertained. So I did some digging to find out what various airlines are doing to make flying as pleasant as possible.

Direct From the Sky

Alaska Airlines offers another alternative to ``Autumn in New York``-type disasters: the DigEplayer. For $10, passengers can rent one of these units--think portable DVD player--and choose from a number of movies and TV shows to watch at will (DigEplayer`s site claims 20 to 30 programs, but I counted only 12 on Now Showing list on its Web site). I`ve never rented a DigEplayer, but I`ve been on flights where an entire family of kids has been quiet thanks to the nonstop entertainment it provides. In my book, that`s almost as valuable as having one in front of me.