Author: John Bollwitt

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A lot of chatter about a Microsoft, “iPod killer”

A lot of sites have been reporting on this for the last week, but the rumors are turning more factual. It won’t be too surprising that by the time you head out to do you Christmas shopping this year, Microsoft will have their own portable media player trying to empty more cash out of your wallet.

Music companies are apparently leaking some details about Microsoft’s plans, according to a Times story that cites sources close to the project. As the story goes, Microsoft is not merely developing one product aimed at dethroning the iPod. It is developing a complete line of Xbox-branded digital media products, including a device that plays media, a software media player and an online media service.

Microsoft has code-named the project “Argo” in honor of the huge warship used by the Greek mythological hero named Jason, the Times reported. Microsoft executives were not immediately available for comment. [macnewsworld]

The friendly geeks, I mean folks, over at Engadget have posted a photo of the yet to be revealed device, saying that the source is some one working very close to the project. Being a companion to the Xbox brand, this might not be the only device of its kind released. Only time will tell, but “wireless” is the buzz word surrounding it.

But will this be an iPod killer? I wouldn’t bet on it. Based on a post from MacRumors, this product, or products, is likely to be utilized much in the same way that Apple uses the iPod and iTunes music store. Obviously, Microsoft is pushing to get their own contracts for their service, whatever it might be.

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Photographs exhibiting evidence of global warming

I had heard about The Canary Project somewhere before, but the post on Boing Boing led me over to the site.  What they are trying to accomplish should give you a reason to pause and think it over a little.

The mission of The Canary Project is to photograph landscapes around the world that are exhibiting dramatic transformation due to global warming and to use these photographs to persuade as many people as possible that global warming is already underway and of immediate concern.

To compile a persuasive body of images, we will be photographing at least 16 landscapes throughout the world. These images will show that global warming: (1) is affecting the world in a variety of ways (melting, sea-level rise, drought, extreme weather events, dying habitats, etc.); (2) is affecting every place on earth.  [canary-project]

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New branding for the podcast

RadioZoomQuietly launched with the last episode of the podcast, RadioZoom now has a logo. Thanks so much to Trent at DigitalGumball for coming up with the design. Rebecca was the one who got in touch with him, being a long time friend of hers.

I gave very little insight into the concept, but the outcome impressed me. I always had lots of ideas in my head but was never smart enough to work through the graphics in order to come up with anything I was too happy with. Trent’s a very talented guy. Thanks so much for the creation!

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RDS compatible iPod transmitters

Caught word of this on Macworld and thought it was pretty nifty.  Do you own a car with a RDS compatible stereo?  Got an iPod?  This might be worth checking out.

Kensington’s new RDS FM Transmitter/Car Charger for iPod works with Radio Display System (RDS)-enabled car stereos. The $89.99 device transmits artist and song title information from the iPod to RDS-equipped car stereos. It’s expected to go on sale this month.

Like other FM transmitters for the iPod, the Kensington RDS FM Transmitter enables the iPod to transmit to your automobile’s stereo on an unused frequency. You can set three memory settings to tune into unused frequencies as you drive. The iPod LCD can be used to display station information.  [playlistmag]

Powered through your car’s cigarette lighter/power outlet and “works with any iPod that comes with a 30-pin dock connector except third-generation iPods.”

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Now they can act like they won the World Cup

Italy fans celebrating up and down Robson StreetIt was an amazing final. And to be completely honest, this is the first time that I’ve watched the final game in any World Cup be played, yet alone pay attention to one from beginning to end. The ’94 tournament in the U.S. got my attention, but my young mind got distracted half way through and never caught the final outcome.

I didn’t want Italy to win today[fifaworldcup]. I have not liked their style of play from the beginning of the tournament. Yes, I was cheering for the U.S.A. when they came up against each other, but during the entire match, their acting abilities of taking even the slightest nudge and turning it into a life threatening spectacle made me embarassed for futbol in general. It’s such an exciting game until faked dramatics steal the spotlight.

Out of the two teams in the final, this weighed heavy into picking my favorite, France, to take the match. Zidane[wiki] was going to retire, making this his final, professional appearence ever. France won the ’98 World Cup and took out the champs from last time around, Brazil, in the quarter-finals. They were hungry. Zidane would want to go out on top. It all seemed to make sense, right?


Zidane in today’s action.

Zidane scoring France's only goal in the World Cup finalWhat the hell, Zidane? All was far from lost for France, and you just lost control. Just minutes before he got that red card, we all saw what he could do with a header towards the goal. Buffon[wiki] made the save of the World Cup only to have it dimished when Zidane used that tool of the game as a weapon. I even said to Rebecca that it was almost a “Bertuzzi-esque move”, to which she replied that no one’s probably going to sue over it.

Shocking. I think I said “I can’t believe that just happened” about twenty times until the extra time expired. The penalty shootout didn’t even signify the end for France either, but the fact was that Zidane was gone. If France would have won, he wouldn’t have been there for the celebration. On top of that, there is no way that you can give him the benefit of a bad call by the officials. You have to give him credit though because in the end, he did go out with a bang.

And at the time of posting this, I can still hear horns honking and cheers for Italy in the west end of Vancouver.

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Free box seats to a Canadians game!

Rebecca’s mom is pretty awesome.  She scored us a couple of free tickets to a Vancouver Canadians game because she knew this boy from America would dig seeing a baseball game here in B.C.  To that I have to say, oh hell yes I would.

The Vancouver Canadians are the Single “A” Affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. We play in the Northwest League with seven other teams during the summer months each year. The team has a schedule of 76 games (38 home 38 away) and the season starts at the end of June each year. The team plays those 76 games in 79 days each year in a manner that can only be described as “traditional”. They make their way from stadium to stadium each game via bus, each player trying to hone their skills with the hopes of one day making it to the major leagues.  [canadiansbaseball]

I think we’ll try to make it out for a game against the Boise Hawks.  They are a Chicago Cubs affiliate afterall.

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The patio at the Robson Public Market

I always forget about the Robson Public Market and am constantly amused by all the goodies you can get in there. (You can also read what Rebecca wrote about it as well.) While waiting for my beef shishkabob to be prepared, I discovered the little patio that looks out over Robson Street. It’s small, quaint, and really nothing special, but with all the different places you can grab some food from, it’s a nice place to have a bite to eat. Well, I would imagine. I just stepped out there to snap this pic with my cell but plan to be back soon!

The pation at the Robson Street Market

There’s a few Asian food places upstairs that caught my eye while waiting from my food at Souvlaki Express. More importantly, the fact that you can get a California or B.C. roll for around $3 a piece. That’s not bad, and I’ve had a fierce craving for sushi lately.

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TV execs want to disable fast-forward on DVRs

This is one of the most rediculous things that I have heard yet, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t possible.

ABC HAS HELD DISCUSSIONS ON the use of technology that would disable the fast-forward button on DVRs, according to ABC President of Advertising Sales Mike Shaw, with the primary goal to allow TV commercials to run as intended.

“I would love it if the MSOs, during the deployment of the new DVRs they’re putting out there, would disable the fast-forward [button],” Shaw said. […]

Shaw also threw cold water on the idea that neutering the fast-forward option would result in a consumer backlash. He suggested that consumers prefer DVRs for their ability to facilitate on-demand viewing and not ad-zapping–and consumers might warm to the idea that anytime viewing brings with it a tradeoff in the form of unavoidable commercial viewing.

“I’m not so sure that the whole issue really is one of commercial avoidance,” Shaw said. “It really is a matter of convenience–so you don’t miss your favorite show. And quite frankly, we’re just training a new generation of viewers to skip commercials because they can. I’m not sure that the driving reason to get a DVR in the first place is just to skip commercials. I don’t fundamentally believe that. People can understand in order to have convenience and on-demand (options), that you can’t skip commercials.” [mediapost]

Even if there is a large enough push from the TV industry to start shipping DVRs with fast-forward disabled, there will be a hack for it. However, it’s the last statement that gets me. This is another example of industry forcing new technology to work for itself rather than finding alternative ways to adapt to an ever changing medium.

You think HDTV is something we are doing for the good of humanity? There’s a reason that plasmas and LCDs cost so much. It’s all about profit. Now that TV execs aren’t getting the results the networks need, they want to do what they can to control it. Instead of spending the money to fight it, they should spend time finding new ways to generate revenue. They’ll just keep losing ground heading this direction.

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The pitfalls of joining a podcast network like PodShow?

I often struggled with the thought of joining a podcast network and the benefits that it would give me with my podcast. Hot on the heels of my 100th episode, this issue with PodShow makes me rethink the whole idea as ever being a good thing.

Some podcasters are “pissed” at PodShow, a podcast portal founded by podcasting pioneer Adam Curry. The site appears to be republishing podcaster’s podcast feeds, with changes, under PodShow URLs. […]

The republishing of podcast feeds under different URLs has raised controversy in the past because it can infringe on podcaster’s copyrights, confuse listeners about the correct source for the podcast and make it impossible for podcasters to know how many people are subscribing to their podcast. […]

“There’s stuff to do and things to patch/fix/glue on PodShow.com,” said Podshow’s Adam Curry. “The most obvious being that external feeds should of course link to the original external feed.”

Some podcasters think the bug explanation is credible.

“We don’t know that it was intentional by any means,” said Ookles’ Scott Johnson. “Before we pile on lets give them time to correct it. If they don’t correct it then, by all means, flame away.”

Many podcasters aren’t buying this explanation, though, having seen similar approaches to retaining visitor’s attention previously.

“That is not an innocent mistake,” said podcast pioneer Michael Geoghegan, (Reel Reviews, Disney). “Someone had to plan which RSS channel elements to pull and which to ignore. The cast and crew at PodShow have been around long enough and, frankly, dealt with the issues of RSS feeds enough times to know better.” [podcastingnews]

Innocent mistake or not, it’s an issue to not take lightly when you are a podcaster. The heavy hitters are already weighing in on what’s going on, and PodShow really hasn’t had a chance to make the corrections necessary, if this is indeed an oversight on their part. However, being one of the first, “major” companies that has been created towards podcasting specifically, you would think that this would have been considered from day one.

The other element to this drama makes me draw a comparison to how record labels work in relation to the major recording corporations and independent labels or bands. You have to be careful when you go with the big guys because they can own your soul depending on the details of your contract. Going indie tends to gain you some generous breathing space in terms of creativity, but doubles your work.

You have to be careful when the popular group of kids in school come knocking at your door and want you to be apart of what their doing. If you’re not careful, you can get locked into something that might not be as cool as you thought it would. I understand that PodShow contracts are supposed to be pretty flexible and generous towards the content of your podcast. Of course, you’re still putting your name down in ink, and that’s legally binding.

Update: The “problem” seems to be resolved.