live | The Webernets

WD TV Live Hub

July 7, 2011August 5, 2011 The Webernets2 Comments

I have been extremely caught up in “Apple Magic” lately, and I was all set to buy the new Apple TV 2. Upon digging deeper, I found that Sir Stevie doesn’t want us watching those crude .avi files on his gorgeous looking, ultra small box with an insanely slick user interface. BOO! Trouble is, EVERY video I have on my FreeBSD FREENAS server (200+) is in an AVI container encoded with the open source XVID codec, or in the case of my HD Vids, MKV format. In other words, the basic free open source standard formats that everybody is using when sharing video on the internet. All the TV shows and video’s I converted from VHS video cassettes, the home movies from the many video cameras we have had, and a swag of other video’s we have accumulated over the last 20 years, have all ended up in AVI format. When I have wanted to send a video to somebody, I have found that pretty much everybody who can receive a video to watch on their computer, can watch an AVI, so that has become my standard format when creating/saving video. The problem is though, Sir Stevie wants you to convert all of those videos to his Quicktime based formats, and if you don’t comply, you can’t watch your videos on his device….DOUBLE BOO!

Today, I set out to look at the D-Link Boxee as I learned it was capable of plaving AVI’s, and along the way I discovered Western Digital’s WD LIVE TV HUB. After 5-10 minutes on the iPhone researching, we left Office Works with one!

Within 5 minutes of un-boxing it, it was up and running. All I had to connect was the power cord, a HDMI cable to the TV, and a Ethernet cable to my network/internet connection. It updated its own firmware quickly and automatically, and before long I was watching my videos from my FreeBSD FREENAS server on my Samsung LCD TV via the WD TV Live Hub

I am VERY Impressed with this device, and will post updates as they arise.

WYSI’sntalwaysWYG – Part 2

June 21, 2011June 24, 2011 The Webernets0 comment

Continuing on from the last few post’s about how the layout of this site appears in Internet Explorer, as opposed to every other browser, both obscure and popular, David from Digital Raindrops suggested I run the sites code through the W3C Validator to see if there are any errors.

And sure enough, I had simply forgotten to close a Center tag on an image, which in true IE fashioned, spilled over and ruined the entire site layout, where every other browser was able to deal with it. In the end it was my fault, but I did learn some interesting stuff along the way. Adobe have a feature online now called “Cs Live Services”. As yet, I haven’t had time to explore them completely. What I did find is that Adobe have their own equivalent to Browser Shots, called Adobe Browser Lab.

It is free until April 2012, after which time I expect it will be quiet expensive, and part of a much broader package of software, as Adobe seems to me to be wanting to move us all to using their products online instead of locally on our computers, in an effort to thwart piracy of their programs. Like most Adobe stuff, it looks great!

As you can see, it has considerably less choices than Browser Shots, but it has more than 90% of the world’s computer users covered, which also makes it faster. The drawback for me is that the default size setting for the results is 100%, meaning its a one for view, it shows your site EXACTLY, size and all. In the options, you can reduce the size to only 75%. If you want to view two browser views side by side in a 2-up configurations you had better have a BIG screen.

A very useful tool, and my suggestion is to use and enjoy it while you can!

No Concerts for You!

June 17, 2011June 19, 2011 The Webernets0 comment

FRIDAY:

Like him or hate him, Steve Jobs is easily one of, if not THE best CEO’s, and visionaries of the modern Tech world. Now, I know you are going to label me “Fan Boy” after reading that, and to an extent you are correct. But I confess to being a “Fan Boy” only within the boundaries of my own productivity and prosperity. My Mac Pro allows me to edit HD video, and process my photos with color calibration, in a way that Windows and Nix’s are not quiet able to do yet (If you see it differently, please comment – I would love to hear your thoughts). Please keep in mind though, as a newly labelled “Fan Boy” by you, if one of my dogs was sick, and as I was carrying it through the car park to the vet surgery and my iPhone fell out of my pocket, I wouldn’t look back, and I wouldn’t think twice, even if a car ran over it. I am not one of “Those” people who “Would Just DIE” without their iPad, You know the type. Even though I love my Mac Pro, I do have Windows XP and Puppy Linux set up in VMWARE Fusion Virtual Machines on my Mac Pro, and I do use them both more than often, especially to view my web creations on non mac browsers like IE, Konquerer etc.

Today, Sir Stevie of Jobby-Land decreed that thou shalt not be able to film concert events with thine iPhone!

Immediately the media were on this, and it does raise some interesting questions. All of which are valid.

The way I see it, I expect the RIAA, Sony BMG, RCA etc have gotten into Sir Stevie saying that the iPhone is a piracy device. Now, to Sir Stevie’s credit, I don’t think that would bother him. He has “flipped off” the RIAA before – remember when iTunes was born? But in this case, I think Lord Jobbyness stepped up to the plate as the greatest CEO in the Galaxy, and put his company and his shareholders first, and told the RIAA and the record companies, that he would oblige, and fit their infrared anti piracy, anti music stealing, anti seal clubbing, anti granny/cop killing laser to the death star to protect the universe from the scrappy band of rebels who want to pay hundreds of dollars (or half a weeks wages) to go to a concert and record P!NK on her Trapeze thingy!

Because GOD HELP US ALL IF THAT GOT OUT!

But why?

Why would the universes greatest CEO who has proved that he is not scared of the RIAA in the past put his beloved “fruit company” in harms way, and jeopardize the companies good name to it’s customers by restricting the device and not allowing them to use it to record live performances?

I don’t believe for a second that Sir Stevie would allow this issue to make it to the global media if there wasn’t some bigger picture that we all don’t quiet see yet. Again, love him or hate him, he is just too smart, and has proved dozens of times that he is able to manipulate and control the media to his advantage.

(my prediction)

MONDAY:

Some wonderful new reason justifying why everything that’s wrong in the universe is suddenly right, and we can all smile, feeling re-assured that Apple would never hurt us, and go back to listening to U2 (soon to be renamed “I2″……..I just made that up 🙂 ) on our iPods and iPhones, with our iMacs, taking a iDump on our iToilet…………..

He’s the “Wolf in sheep’s clothes (with a liver he purchased from a third world country)” today, but next week his “Grand Plan” will all become clear, and as a result we will all want to go and purchase new iPods/iPhones, and some Beatles music from iTunes as icing on the cake.

And just for a giggle,

Lets take a look at the App store shall we!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/concert-recorder-cd-quality/id338045354?mt=8

Download it while you can!

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