Roku Digital Video Player
Written on 31 January 2009 byI just purchased the Roku Digital Video player after learning that as of January of this year HD content would be available. For those unfamiliar with this player, you must have a Netflix account and you are able to stream to TV any video content labeled “instant play” on Netflix. In comparison to the Apple TV, this Roku player ROCKS!. The interface could not be easier and even though you can only add content from your computer on the Netflix site, the playback is great. I have AT&T premium DSL account and did not experience any drop out. Regarding HD playback I did find some content labeled as HD, but which did not play in HD (?). The playback is in 780p.
The downfall is the availability of HD content. I am hoping this will improve over time. In the meantime this device is a sure thing. As I play with it, I will blog some more.
Regarding Windows 7 Bug
Written on 23 January 2009 byThere is a serious bug affecting Windows Media player in which an Mp3 file will become corrupt when played. The fix is an Update that must be installed before using windows media player. The update can be downloaded from http://support.microsoft.com/kb/961367. Once you have installed the update you are ready to go.
Windows 7 (beta) - “Ready for prime time!”
Written on 22 January 2009 byOK, so here is my start to the new year. Happy New Year to all!!!!
Now back to Windows 7 beta. I have downloaded and installed and the OS is great. It is what Vista should have been and better. While I never had problems with Vista, this version is much much better. It is running smoothly and fast. All Vista compatible applications have been running great with a few exceptioms. Amazon’s Mp3 downloader will not install, however I have been able to install iTunes, Eset’s NOD32 antivirus, Adobe 8 PDF Pro, Microsoft office, and many others. All are working fine.
Do I recommend it? Hell yea!! If you feel uncomfortable installing a beta application in which you will not get any tech support, than don’t. But if you feel comfortable and can find the answers through forums, go ahead. This OS is READY. I can’t imagine what the complete and final will look like.
HD-DEAD!!
Written on 22 February 2008 byWell it become official, Toshiba pulled out on the HD-DVD business and now Blu-ray is the official format for high definition DVD. That is great news for everyone, so let the conversion to high definition DVDs begin and here we go again, replacing our catalog of movies just like we did with VHS. Oh well.
I am glad we have one format, but I just recently became aware of why HD-DVD would have been better or maybe not. I have just received my Netflix rental of The Invasion and American Gangster, both on HD-DVD and what was surprising was that on one side of the disc it was HD-DVD encoded and on the flip side just regular DVD encoded. Hmmm…two for the price of one? So when on plane trips or maybe at work or maybe with friends, where there is no HD-DVD player, I still have a copy of the movie in standard DVD. Now that’s what I call getting your money’s worth. Now I know that Warner was going to do this and I think that WAS a great idea. I hope the Blu-ray camp will consider doing the same. I would consider paying a little extra to get movies in two formats on one disc.
Till Later!
HD-DVD - “Seems the end is very very near.”
Written on 17 February 2008 bySeems the end is very near for Toshiba and the HD-DVD format. What with Wal-Mart and Netflix each going exclusive with the Blu-ray format, it appears that this is the way to go. I purchased a Toshiba HD-DVD about a year ago only because of the huge price difference between players. But now the prices of Blu-ray players have dropped considerably. I certainly am glad that the war is over and that it did not continue further which could have resulted is additional loss in investment. The few disc I have were either free (from the initial offer by Toshiba) or bought such as my “Blade Runner” discs in hi-def.
So what is next? Looking to buy a Blu-ray player and thank goodness “Blade Runner” is also available in Blu-ray format. I will let you know which player I purchase later.
2008 and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Written on 2 January 2008 by dudeWell I have neglected this site for most of the year of 2007, and I am sorry.
2008 will be different as I hope to post on a regular basis. Upcoming will be my experience with the iTouch, including hacking this version of the ipod and what worked and what did not work. Also, I will continue posting comments with my experience with Vista. I was an early adopter, and I must say that despite everyone wishing to dis Vista, it has been a very very stable OS. Enough said for now. Catch everyone later.
I Got My Hands on The iPhone
Written on 31 July 2007 byWell, I didn’t buy an iPhone, since I am going to wait until the next generation gets release. By then I will be out of my Verizon contract. However, I did get to try it in my little hands. I have to admit it is a very sleek device. Like the ipod, appears to be very well designed with beautiful graphics. My only concerns is what 3rd party software would do to it smooth operation. I certainly got the temptation to go out a buy one, but I will be waiting instead.
Apple’s iPhone?
Written on 6 July 2007 byWhy no blog on Apple’s new iPhone? Well, what could I say that hasn’t been said at other sites! I will wait until the dust settles. Until then.
iTunes 7.3 and Vista
Written on 6 July 2007 byStrange? You have seen my last blog on iTunes 7.2 and my troubles installing and getting it to work properly with Vista. Well low and behold, today suddenly and without warning, my iTunes program stopped working. Vista’s recommendation was install the newest version of iTunes. NO! Not again!
Well with no solution available, I did updated to iTunes 7.3. And to my surprise, an easy install and iTunes’ working properly. Maybe, just maybe Apple finally got it right with Vista. I will keep you updated as I use this version since on previous version there were several bugs that were most bothersome with Vista. One in particular was I could not add more than 2 songs at a time to my library. Check back soon.
Hologram “Picture” Found on Vista Business DVD
Written on 21 June 2007 by dudeAn interesting picture of the three men who worked on the Windows Vista DVD hologram design can be found on the DVD disc inself (http://inicia.es/de/kwisatz/index.html#2878790462939498204). According to Microsoft, there are more such images scattered throughout the hologram design of these discs. On their blog they state “The photo in question is only one of multiple images contained in the hologram design, all of whose inclusion serves to make it more difficult to replicate a Windows Vista DVD. The other images are of old master works of art that are in the public domain. These images are part of numerous other security measures that have been designed into our media, packaging and certificates of authenticity. Hence, even though this image has been reproduced on the Web, there are many other features providing further security.” Apparently, the images are less than 1 mm and are difficult to detect. If anyone finds other, please comment their location here.
Happy image hunting!!
