Tuesday, November 13, 2012

iTunes Update Messes Up iPod Synching

I tend to ignore the constant updates Apple does to iTunes. The reason is the reputation of major problems following updates. This could be solved if there was a different system in place. This is the only software I know that makes you install the entire 200 MB package all over again.

So here's what happened to me. After several months of ignoring the update, I finally installed it a couple of weeks ago. Then yesterday I bought the iTunes LP "The Resistance" by Muse. (Amazingly the extra stuff like photos, videos & lyrics took longer to download than the entire album) Fine. Then I burned a CD like I always do. The reason is to make sure I have a backup. Plus it's an audio CD I can play, so I know the download actually worked, & I can re-install it if something happens to the computer.

Again this worked fine. Then I plugged my 4th generation nano into my computer. Not so fine. It never showed up in the sidebar. So I unplugged the nano, plugged the USB cable into a different port. Still nothing. Went online, looked for info. Lots of convoluted explanations of what to do. Finally shut down iTunes & restarted it. Then it worked. Whoopee!

All I can guess is that I haven't syncronized my iPod in quite a while, & certainly not with this version. This also is not the first time this has happened. It seems to be a problem with new downloads. If I add a Cd in my collection it doesn't seem to do this. Meaning that strangely, iTunes sometimes has issues with it's own files, which doesn't seem to make sense. It should have more problems with outside devices like CD's,especially since you don't have to be logged in to upload a CD.

I still contend, although Apple would disagree, that the music store should be separate from the manager/player. Put the store online, meaning make it a website like Amazon. After all, you can download from Amazon & have the file sent directly to iTunes, so that shouldn't be an issue.

Once you do that, iTunes becomes a smaller program, with probably less need of absurdly large update files. The use of Quicktime appears to be an issue to some people. Not sure if thats my issue or not. Not popups saying it is, but I notice in the support forums that it is for a lot of people. Remove it, either use the hated Flash (I've never had an issue- all video works fine on my computer), or HTML5. Size diminishes, meaning less problems.    

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Why We Can't Vote Online

Today is election day. Like a large number of people on the west coast, I voted weeks ago by mail. In my state (California-largest in population), over 50% will vote by mail. The two neighboring states of Oregon & Washington are 100% vote by mail. Voter participation is high for this reason.

Could it be even higher? Why can't we log on to a voting website & do it that way? Because of fraud. It is well known how certain groups are good at hacking. Touch screen voting was a disaster here & other places because of software issues. Issues that included counting all votes for one candidate than who the person actually selected. Paper receipts were eventually required, but that didn't help.

The Republican Party & it's mouthpieces talk about voter fraud, but in-person voting has very little. They just don't want people to vote, especially minorities because they know they will vote Democratic. So they send out "watchdog groups" to intimidate voters. This is not democracy.

So how can we get voting to join the 21st Century? There has to be a concerted effort to make online voting possible. Mail voting still means hand counting. Meaning someone with an agenda can cook the results. Software needs to be created that can't be hacked, or at least is very hard to, so one can vote through a smartphone app, or by going to a secure website. Once that's done, we can take care of a bigger problem. The fact that only 60% of eligible voters cast a ballot.  

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Mickey Mouse Meets Darth Vader

I was very surprised when I read that George Lucas had sold Lucasfilm to Disney. Then I saw the video where he said he had been planning to retire for the last four years. This is a big deal.

Then Bob Iger says there will be 3 new films. Remember, at one time it was claimed that there were supposed to be nine films. The original 3, 3 that took place before (that would be trilogy #2), & 3 that took place after the events of SWIV (Return of the Jedi). 

The only question is the actors. Do you set it enough in the future (30+ years) that you can have Harrison Ford & Mark Hamill play their characters at real age? If they even want to do it. Or a different time frame.

And does Disney release new DVD's using that annoying business of "last chance before it goes in the vault for 10 years"?

Or is this deal just an excuse for Disney to get hold of a real special effects company, namely ILM? And will Lee Corso now have to dress as Yoda?  

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

ESPN Latest To Require Verification Of Cable Subscription

The shift in the last few months towards a verification model to watch streaming media is a last ditch effort by old media to keep their audience. While young people are talking about "cutting the cord", the service providers are fighting tooth & nail to prevent it.

First it was Comcast & the ugly My TV Everywhere nonsense. Two years ago you could watch streaming Olympic video just by clicking on a link on NBC's special website. This summer you had to sign in through your cable or satellite provider's website to watch. 

Two years ago you could watch World Cup Skiing simply by going on Universal Sports website & clicking on the video. Last year you had to pay $60 for the season to watch. This year you have to verify that you subscribe to the network through your provider.

HBO does this through HBO GO. But that makes sense because it's a premium channel. Now it's ESPN. I've always been able to watch pre-recorded games. I work on Saturdays, so I would watch college football on my days off, Mon or Tues. Never really watch live stuff. Last night on a whim, I tried to stream the MNF game. Now ESPN requires verification! And even worse, doesn't support Directv. Meaning even though I subscribe to Directv, I can't watch live because there's no deal between the two.

So what does one do? Here's something that may or may not be legal. A  European website called First Row Sports streams through ESPN America, the European cable partner. In fact they stream all Sunday games from Fox, CBS & NBC. No American TV commercials, all ESPN America ads for other games. Now do the cable operators know this? Do they care, or do they figure no one knows? I'm guessing a little of both.

Eventually this will be settled. The verification model will not last. Those in the know can get around it. Otherwise we will end up having to pay a subscription to watch online or by the event. I assume this is what the providers would like. But that model will eventually die.     

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

$329 For An iPad Mini?

This may be the silliest pricing ever for a tech device. Why exactly would anyone pay $329 for an entry level iPad mini when $499 gets you a full sized one? I realize that Apple fanboys are not the brightest shoppers out there & will spend any amount of money just because it's Apple, but really, cmon.

Since the Nexus 7 & the Kindle Fire are $199 I fail to understand the pricing for this. Except that since the days of Steve Jobs, Apple has been about massive profits upfront. Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon has made it clear from the beginning that the Fire breaks even, & Amazon makes it's money from Kindle owners shopping in the store.

Google will do the same thing with the Nexus 7. Apple doesn't seem to care about convincing people to shop in the iTunes store. They know apps aren't that expensive, & most buy e-books from Amazon, so that justifies the pricing for the iPad. I'm not sure that's true. But the iPad does outsell the Kindle Fire, so maybe people really are hypnotized by the Apple name. I'm not & won't be buying one. But then again, I won't be buying ANY tablet. I have a full sized desktop. Works for me. 

The Dissapearing Mailbox

I live in a condo complex with central mailboxes. The one near me has a broken door, meaning instead of the door being locked until the mailman opens it to collect outgoing mail, it's wide open. Needless to say, this concerns me. So instead of dropping my bills in there, I went out on the street looking for another box.

I couldn't find a box on the street, so I had to turn around, go back in my complex & find another box. Here's my issue & question. There used to be a box on every corner. Now there aren't any. Is this because no one mails letters anymore or is the post office just using that as an excuse to cut back on pick up & delivery?

I think it's the latter. Yes people are e-mailing & texting, but bills still come via the mail, as do magazines. Yes you can pay bills online, but what does that really mean? It means combining all your bills under a single account, usually a credit card. but how is that paid? Surprise, a bill that comes in the mail. I'm not sure companies want to set up accounts to withdraw funds from bank accounts, & I sure don't want them to know my bank account number.

So this means the old way of doing things is still the best way. You may not like mailing money but until a better system comes along, this is the way to go. 


Monday, October 22, 2012

Music & Lyrics Online

I don't know why it is, but there doesn't seem to be an easy way to combine digital downloads with song lyrics. Why this is I don't know. iTunes policy is that you can paste or type in lyrics on your iPod, but that's not really a perfect system.

A better system would be to have the lyrics embedded in the file. I'm guessing that the reason this hasn't been done is another example of copyright nonsense.

When I'm on my desktop this is what I can do, & in fact did this morning. Open two tabs on my browser. One on You Tube or iTunes for a particular song, the other tab or window on songlyrics.com, a site that allows you to find the lyrics to thousands of songs. So find the lyrics to the song, return to the other tab with the song, hit play then switch your browser to the lyrics. It works, but it's not perfect & again, you can't transfer the printed lyrics to your iPod, iPhone or whatever device.

At some point there is going to have to be a better way. Mind you, the music industry is against anything that is in the best interest of the consumer. If it doesn't enrich them, they are not interested.  

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

The Funniest Tech Podcast

I love to watch tech podcasts. I watch several of the TWIT podcasts. They have changed over time. I started out watching TWIT(This Week in Tech) & TNT(Tech News Today). The problem is that both specialize in spending lots of time on phones & tablets, two things I don't own & have no interest in owning.

Then I found Frame Rate, which is mostly about TV & video & the devices you use to watch. This works for me because I am interested in this. A lot of time is spent on streaming video & outside things like Roku & Boxee. You know, set top boxes for streaming internet content to your TV. It also helps that hosts Tom Merritt(TNT) & Brian Brushwood are quite entertaining & have a good rapport.

Today I tried a new one I hadn't seen before. It's called The Giz Wiz, & features Leo LaPorte(TWIT), the guy who owns the TWIT network & Dick DeBartolo of Mad Magazine. Essentially it reviews gadgets. Not cell phones, silly stuff. I mean one segment is "crap we found on SkyMall". For the uninitiated, SkyMall is that magazine you find on every airplane. Hundreds of pages of ridiculous stuff to waste your time while you sit in you seat while flying.

So what were the gadgets today? How about a touchless toilet? Thats right, it was supposed to raise when you approach it & lower when you're done. Of course it didn't work very well. It took forever to raise & then didn't go all the way up, & of course, didn't lower at all. Highly entertaining. Lots of laughs from everyone involved.

But wait! There's more! Mechanical birds. That's right. The silly video was showing how this was a perfect pet. Don't have to feed it, & it doesn't poop. LOL. Of course the video shows people watching this idiotic thing, including little kids. Tell me, what kid wants a fake pet? Best part was one of Leo's employees actually has a real bird, & had it come over to look at the two fakes. It was chirping at the robots that move apparently based on movement. This was hysterical. Most sitcoms aren't this funny. I will be watching Modern Family in about an hour, I wonder if I will laugh as much as I did at this.

So be sure to check this out. There are a lot of good shows on the TWIT network. One caution: The site seems to have a problem with video this week, so download from iTunes or look on You Tube.    

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Will Hulu Be Dismantled?

Thanks to Frame Rate (TWIT's show about movies, TV & devices used to watch), I read an article on Fast Company about Hulu. It's mostly about the CEO & his fight's with Hulu's owners.

This maybe the first time I have read about owners of something hating the fact that it's successful. The 3 owners of Hulu are News Corp (Fox), Disney (ABC) & Comcast (NBC). The original heads of the content department that created Hulu are gone. They have been replaced by corporate shills who hate their own site because they believe it canibalizes viewership. In other words, people watch shows on Hulu, rather than on the networks, & they make more money from ads on TV than on the internet.

So they keep making things difficult, & complain about free content. This is why Hulu Plus was created: to shut up the complaining, which was mostly from News Corp. Gee what a surprise that someone working for Rupert Murdoch wouldn't want content available. After all, Murdoch has stated in public that he thinks everyone should pay to watch online.

Will Hulu survive? This is the question. Some shows that were on Hulu are now on, or being offered to Netflix. Some content is actually being offered to You Tube, which is ironic, since according to the Fast Company article, Hulu was created to keep network content off of You Tube. 

Monday, October 15, 2012

Video Fails On Tech Site

You would think that a technology site wouldn't have issues with video but you would be wrong. For the second time recently, the TWIT network has an issue on it's site.

A few months ago it was doing this, along with Google warning that malware was on the site. I guess the bad guys don't like being outed. But this is different.

When you go to the site & try to watch any of the dozens of podcasts, nothing happens. There is a black screen with nothing to click. Since Firefox updates a ridiculously number of times, I decided to try out (horrors) IE9. Sorry, no difference. I am not sure what the issue is. My Adobe Flash is completely updated, & works on every other site. Whether it's You Tube or video links on the Huffington Post or others, they work. And anyway, if I download the podcast from iTunes it works, so hopefully the issue will soon be resolved.

And speaking of iTunes, why when updating do I have to reinstall the entire program? I did this today & it took a half an hour. No other software program does this. Heck Firefox updated this morning from 15 to 16. It took a couple of minutes.
Seriously, why such a silly way of updating a program that is way too bloated. If it didn't insist on using Quick Time & the store was online rather than part of the program,  it would be a lot smaller.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Window Update Problem

After being informed that an important update needed to be downloaded, I tried to do it manually. This was a waste of an hour this morning. No matter how many times I tried to download the update, it would fail.

So I went on the Microsoft forums, only to find that this is a apparently corrupted update. Some people have been able to get it to install, but others haven't. I must have tried 10 times. If I go in the update file, there are a lot of listings for this failed update.

The listings in the forums go back a month. I wonder when Microsoft intends to do something about this? I had a problem with my anti virus not updating a week ago. Avast! fixed it within a day.  For Microsoft not to fix this after a month is unacceptable. I believe this is a security update for IE9. Too bad 10 isn't out yet, because that might just override the problem.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Avast! Flops & NBC Fails Political Stream

There is something about anti-virus software. It doesn't like me. I used to use Avira until it started misreading Microsoft updates. Namely it started listing nonexistent problems under the name "hidden objects". Not just a couple, but rather 70 or so. This is when I switched to Avast!

Today Avast! decided it didn't want to update anymore. It had, up until now, been more reliable at updates. Sometimes Avira would go days without updating. Avast! would do it as soon as I started up my system. Until today. And I couldn't do it manually either. And when I went on Avast! forums, there were a ton of people with the same issue.

This is the problem with software. I usually ignore iTunes updates because of their reputation for screwing things up & now my anti-virus is doing it. I will keep my eyes open to see what happens.

Then there's NBC. Tonight there was a presidential debate. There is no question that this should have been streamed on all stations broadcasting the event. But NBC & MSNBC weren't, or at least I couldn't find a way to do it on either website, using multiple browsers. Why is this even an issue? I finally found it being streamed by CNN. Makes sense they would have it, but what was NBC's problem? Old media sometimes has problems with new technologies, but this is just silly. There is no excuse for this. If it's a way to force you to have to watch it the traditional way, sorry, that doesn't cut it. Huffington Post was streaming it. How I don't know. I assume they had a deal with one of the cable channels.

This should not happen & these broadcasters have to realize that they have to serve all possible viewers in as many ways as possible. Hopefully by the election, they will have it figured out.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Streaming Football

As an experiment I decided to see if I could stream the game yesterday. A fan website I visit mentioned First Row. I had no knowledge of this site so I decided to check it out.

Originally, the only site I knew of that streamed games was Justin TV. So this was my first experience with First Row. Not the best experience, but not awful either. Picture quality varied, & there was some buffering, & finally straight out freezing that caused me to quit the site & go to my TV.

Here's the thing. This site, like Justin TV is illegally streaming NFL games. But at the same time the stream includes all network commercials. Heck ESPN 3 doesn't even show commercials. When there is an ad break, it shows trivia questions.

The question is of course, why doesn't Fox & CBS simply stream the games? It's not the NFL banning streaming because NBC streams the Sunday game & ESPN streams MNF.  CBS also refuses to stream college games, while ESPN streams every game they broadcast, which is dozens of games over the course of a weekend.

Yes there is more money to be made by exclusivity, but again, why do NBC & ESPN stream the single NFL game they have, but the main networks don't? Is it simply too many games? I doubt that because that's not a problem for ESPN.

See, I will stick to watching over the air, because the illegal streams, well, they suck. ESPN & NBC when it was streaming the Olympics, had no buffering or freezing problems. I guess they invested in enough high quality servers to handle the load.

Since the networks stream every prime time show, I wonder if they just don't have an interest in having a sports section on their site. I would really like to know what the actual reason is. Mind you, SpeedTV doesn't stream F1 races either, nor do the local regional cable channels stream the local baseball teams games.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Microsoft To Charge $99/yr For Office

In one of the oddest, stupidest ideas yet, Microsoft has released it's pricing for Office 2013. A subscription plan where you pay $99 a year for Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook & One Note. You can buy the regular permanent version for $139. So why would I pay $99 a year instead of $139 once?

Microsoft would like to argue it's for 5 devices not 3 computers. Who cares? It is outrageously overpriced. Ars Technica points out that Office updates every 3 years. So you would pay $300 for Office by subscribing, rather than $140-$150 once. That's not a good selling point.

This will lead more people to Google Docs or Libre Office. Both are free open source programs with automatic conversion to Office format. Yet another mistake from Microsoft to go along with a new OS designed for tablets but forced on desktops.

Internet Reveals Romney's Views

The last couple of days have not been kind to Mitt Romney. First we had the revelation of his views on 47% of the population. Yes, we are all lazy, entitled bums who want to live on the public dole. At least that is what he told his supporters at a fund raiser in July.

Now we find out that at this same event he decided to attack the Palestinians. He said they are not interested in peace with Israel. Doesn't matter if you believe that or not. A candidate & possible next US President cannot say that.

See this is the problem with the conservative movement. They don't understand technology. They don't realize that everyone has a smartphone now, & even if it is a private fundraiser where everyone wants you elected, it's going to be recorded & it will end up online. This is not the old days where Nixon "lost" 13 minutes of tape.

So now there are conservatives like Bill Kristol, who has never been right about anything, telling Romney to step down & make Ryan the presidential nominee. Yeah, that's not going to happen. But again, it's not that he believes this. It's that he said it not understanding that it would show up on YouTube.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Facebook Idiot Doesn't Recognize Romney

My favorite stupid person story of the day. A dumbell spotted a photo of a man he didn't recognize on his girlfriend's Facebook page. Got in an argument & punched her, & smashed her computer. Obviously he went to jail.  It was a campaign photo of Mitt Romney. I'm guessing this guy doesn't vote. Or at least I hope he doesn't. LOL

Sunday, September 16, 2012

New Nano:Same As The Old Nano

It is hilarious how every couple of years Apple changes the design of the iPod nano. Then after a couple of years with the new style , they go back to the old style. This tells me that the old style is still the best.

I have a 4th generation iPod nano. the 5th added a camera. Then for the 6th & 7th, they decided to shorten it so it looked like a watch, & easy to lose. Now for the 8th, back to the rectangular style that looks like a cigarette lighter. The camera is back, but the click wheel has been replaced by a touch screen. So as one website said, it's basically a Touch mini.

It also now only comes in one memory size: 16 GB. Mine is an 8 GB, which is fine for me since after 3 years I'm still only using less than 3 GB. And shockingly, the 16 is the same price as the old 8! Hmmm.

All of this is silly. I am not going to buy one because my nano works fine. Heck I was using it today. Sounds fine, no problems. But the obsessive fanboys will find an excuse to buy one anyway. Well, actually they will probably buy an iPhone 5.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Windows Shutdown?

This morning I started up my computer early. I did this so i could run my Avast! anti-virus scanner. For some reason, the computer shut itself off & rebooted within 10 minutes. I have never had this happen on any computer that I have owned.

So the scan ended up taking longer. Well, officially it was normal length. But it had to be restarted. I can't find anything on the company's forums, & Windows doesn't seem to have anything listed. All my updates are current.

This is just weird. Why would my computer do this? I've never had it do anything like this. I still think that it has to do with the antivirus. But why? I've had Avast! on my system for a few months, after years of using Avira, before it started having problems with Windows Update. Maybe Microsoft needs to check to see if their code is causing problems.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Apple & Amazon For Christmas?

Apple will apparently be announcing a new iPhone on Wednesday & probably a new smaller iPad next month. Last week Amazon announced updated & new Kindle models. So these will be the gadgets that people will be looking to buy a presents this fall.

But why? Do you need to buy a new phone every year? Of course not. But the Apple fanboys have to waste money on the latest idevice to prove how hip they are.

As for the new Kindles, well at least there is an actual new one. The Paperwhite is a different background. Not the grayish background that all e-readers have, but instead a more natural white, backlit reader that is supposed to be easier on the eyes, & simply easier to read. Price isn't that bad either. And the original Kindle is now under $70.

Now will I be buying any of these things? No. I don't have the money or the inclination to waste money on something I may or may not use. I bought a refurbished iPod 3 years ago. That I do use, but maybe only 5 hours a week. Your results may vary.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Why Can't PDF's Reload from Last Page Read?

Since i have to renew my driver's license, I started reading the driver's handbook. On the California DMV site, you can download a PDF of the entire handbook. but what i found was that unless I kept the PDF open, then when I woke up my computer & launched the site I would be back at page 1.

This is a problem. the PDF is over 100 pages. Why should I have to scroll down to where I left off. I remember once downloading a free book on Google & everytime I went back to it, it would open up to wherever I had left it. Same thing with Audible books.

Now maybe this is an issue with the format. but you would think after all these years that they could come up with a system that would be more convenient. I tried saving the document, but that doesn't change anything. It still opens on the first page. So I just decided to keep the document open on the taskbar. Oh well, maybe someday.

Monday, September 3, 2012

Fake Bruce Willis/iTunes Story

A fake story claiming Bruce Willis would sue Apple over the right to leave his iTunes collection to his children when he dies is causing a lot of talk. Not only on the web, but I just saw a story about it on the local Fox channel's 10 o'clock news.

What people don't realize is that the greedy labels forced Apple & Amazon & Google to put a ridiculous restriction on digital downloads. Namely that even though you paid $1.29 per track or $9.99 or up for a full digital CD, you don't technically "own" that music. Say what?

See, this is why everyone hates the record labels. It's not about "protecting the artist". The labels screw the artist every chance they get. You mean the over a hundred dollars I have given iTunes doesn't mean anything? I am only "renting" the music.

Of course, me & everyone else, or at least those who know better, make backups. I always burn a CD after I buy a download. Heck, that's what Apple advises. Besides if your hard drive fails or you want to transfer to a new computer, how else are you going to get your music on the new drive?

So while the story that started this is fraudulent, the truth is it caused people to realize what they can & can't do with "their" music.

 

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Confused TV User Overthinks Tech

While listening to "The Tech Guy" I heard a caller who had a problem that was not helped by the host. Now I love the shows on TWIT. They are very informative & quite entertaining. The host Leo Laporte, however made it more difficult than it was.

The caller's problem was a soundbar that was blocking the infrared light on his flatscreen. So Leo & his guest, a home theater expert were trying to come up with high tech solutions, when a low tech one would have worked.

It's not spending lots of money on a "IR lifter", whatever that is. It's simply making sure the cable box is at a high enough level that the soundbar doesn't block it. I mean the soundbar isn't 5' tall.

My setup is this: My old 25" tube TV is on a TV stand. It sits on top. Then beneath that are 2 shelves behind a glass door. My Directv box is on the higher shelf. No soundbar would block the signal. The lower shelf has the DVD player & the VCR. Yeah, I'm old school. The VCR would probably be blocked, not sure about the DVD player. This is probably the setup for most people.

My cousin has his flatscreen on a built in shelf. It's big enough that the cable box & blue ray sit next to it on the shelf. Again, this is probably a regular setup. And of course, some people have the flatscreen hanging on the wall, with the cable box below it. Most people therefore don't have a problem with blocked signals.

It's just that people will overanalyse how to fix something. Happens all the time. just because it's tech doesn't mean you need a tech solution. Of course I don't have a soundbar. I have a cheap home theater system ($50 at Walmart) with the speakers on either side of the TV. Works like a charm & has for several years.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Will Jurors Decision Create An iPhone Monopoly?

By deciding that Samsung violated Apple patents, does this create a situation where Samsung, Motorola & other manufacturers say " no thanks"?

This is what Apple wanted, a possible monopoly in the cell phone business. But be careful what you wish for. There is no way one company can make that many phones. That's why Android is on so many different devices.

Jurors are saying it wasn't based on it being Apple. I call baloney on that. The trial probably shouldn't have been held in San Jose. The courtroom in downtown SJ is less than 10 miles from Apple headquarters. You telling me there wasn't a bias?

And the foreman owns patents. So yes, he has experience & understands the law. But he also is thinking about his own position. And I'm guessing these Apple fanboys, err jurors didn't even pay attention to Samsung's own suit against Apple. Hey, they're foreigners. We don't have to pay attention to them.

So in the next couple of years, when everything is a feature (AKA dumb) phone, except for the iPhone, & version 6 costs 1 grand, plus a $100 required data plan, you can thank the jury.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Audio Books & Movies

I just finished watching the Hollywood version of "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". I had listened to the audio book version several months ago, so I was aware of the plot.

This is a story that involves computer hacking as a plot point. One of the main characters gathers information by hacking computers. Yes, this is illegal & just plain disturbing. But the character isn't what I would call a conventional heroine anyway.

Of course one of the problems with having recently read the book is that it's 600 pages long, & the movie, although it's 2 1/2 hours long, probably covers a third of the book, cuts out several characters & changes the identity of the missing person ( in the book the presumed murdered girl sneaks off to Australia & becomes a sheep farmer, in the Hollywood film she moves to London & assumes the identity of a dead cousin). OK, can't show everything, movie would be 10 hours long.

Other problem is because I listened to the book as an audiobook, I have a certain idea what characters are like or sound like. That is a problem. Plus because the story is cut, some of the hacking stuff is missing although they try to show the tech used to solve the mystery. tech is always an issue in films, because the filmmakers don't seem to really understand how tech works.

Maybe I'm being too picky. I'm just making an observation. Your results may vary.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Mars Rover On The Web

One of the big science stories right now is the Mars rover Curiosity. This is an important mission for Nasa, but we normal people don't get a lot of info from it. Our TV is loaded with lots of nonsense. Even the Discovery Channel (which you would think would be the place to go) is instead full of gator hunters & gold seekers & shark victims. Ahhh. America. Land of the uninformed.

So what to do? Go to Nasa's website. There are videos & other media about the mission. Plus 128 separate photos taken by either Curiosity or the space orbiter above. Some are black & white, & some have been enhanced with color so one can distinguish certain objects.

This is what tech does for us. there is a Nasa channel, but I'm not sure everyone has it, or if they do, know where it is on their system. But sites like Nasa, or Space.com or even the JPL are good for our own curiosity (yeah, I know).

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Phone Companies Losing Broadband Customers

This story shows people moving from phone based ISP's to cable companies. The reason is the speed. I pay $40 a month for 3 Mbps. The most I can get from AT&T is 6. Meanwhile Comcast offers, I believe 20 Mbps. Of course at a higher price.

But I haven't done it because I subscribe to Directv, & I just know that Comcast would be pressuring me to switch to Comcast for my TV service. I won't do that. I used to have Comcast. Do I really have to tell you why I don't anymore?

I don't need the hassle. Plus, despite the yearly increases, I'm still paying less with Directv than I would with Comcast, or any cable company. So I deal with the low speeds. It was good enough for the Olympic streams, although higher speeds would make downloads quicker. This is why we need more competition, not less.

NBC Attacked Over Olympic Coverage

It's almost expected that American television will screw up any international event. But the closing ceremonies of the Olympics? First they cut out Ray Davies of the Kinks doing a classic song about London "Waterloo Sunset". Then they cut out the group Muse, which was only going to play the official Olympic song. Ooops.

And then they decided they would cut off the closing ceremonies for a horrible new sitcom starring a chimp, rather than broadcast the performance of classic band The Who. Maybe they didn't want people to remember that Who songs are the theme for competitor CBS' CSI shows. 

Yeah, they showed the performance, but at 12 Midnight. Nice job. This on top of simply bad coverage. During the day NBC had 4 different channels going a minimum of 8 hours apiece. But all seemed to be showing the same thing: Volleyball, Beach Volleyball, Soccer & heats in either Swimming or Track. Really extensive coverage. Oh brother.

At least the website had everything. The site is still up. I don't know for how long. I probably watched as much online as on TV. Weightlifting, White Water Canoeing, Wrestling, Judo. Let's see what happens in 2 years at Sochi for the next Winter Olympics.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

NBC Fails At Olympic Video

I'm tired of complaining about video failures but this one is really bad. NBC decided they would stream everything at the Olympics but clearly didn't upgrade their servers to handle the traffic.

Last week, I had no problems watching sports little seen on TV. White Water canoeing/kayaking, weightlifting, fencing. This week however has been awful. I spent two days trying to watch the evening finals in track & field for yesterday. That shouldn't happen.

What was going on? Not just buffering, but a complete failure where the screen would completely freeze up, causing me to open the task manager so I could close the browser. I use Firefox exclusively, but just as an experiment I used IE. It was better but it froze at least once also.

Did NBC not realize how many people would be using the streams? One report says that 5 different events had over 1 million views. That's why there were issues. Go on Google & type in NBC Olympic problems & see how many pages of results come up. This was incompetence clearly. I want to be able to check out sports not seen on my TV, but spending 4-5 hours to watch 2 hours of video won't cut it.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Outlook.com Not Available For Preview

After making a big deal of creating a web based version of Outlook, I wanted to check it out. This is partly because Mozilla has announced there will be no more development of Thunderbird.

So let's check out a web based version of the Microsoft Office e-mail client. Oh, I'm sorry. There is no way to check it out unless you sign up for a Microsoft account first. 

See, this is what I don't understand about companies on the web. Do they not understand that I want to check out the product before I decide if I want to use it? I'm not going to create a Microsoft account just to find out that I would rather just keep my Thunderbird account.

But this seems to be the way the web is being corrupted. Kind of like how I have to sign in through my TV provider to watch Olympic video. Why is that necessary? Answer: It isn't. There are plenty of web sites that want me to register, & I'm just not going to do it. My info is mine, not yours. Kinda like Spotify requiring a Facebook account to listen to music. Really? I can listen to thousands of internet radio stations on iTunes without logging in. I wonder how long that will continue.

So M$ doesn't get me to use Outlook.com because they wouldn't even let me check it out, see what it looks like. Will it be a failure. Who knows. I just know I won't be using it.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

The Olympics Online

As a certifiable Olympics nut, I am watching as much as I possibly can. Most of that is online. Why? Because NBC in it's infinite wisdom is only showing about 4 sports.

During the day, NBC seems to show mostly swimming heats & quarterfinals, beach volleyball & some rowing. NBC Sports Network showed equestrian one day. Another day both NBC SN & MSNBC were showing women's soccer at the same time! Different games, but still.

So on to the web! Forget live action, I like the full event replays. So I've seen several hours of White Water Canoeing/Kayaking. Yesterday I watched an hour of Weightlifting. Today an hour and a half. Yeah, they're probably all roided up, although these were a lower weight class, but it's still fun to watch. Archery. Now that's interesting to watch. The lowest score I've seen in 3 or 4 days is a 7. I probably wouldn't be able to hit the target. Again because the stuff online is a full competition, I have probably watched 3 hours of archery. I doubt if all the NBC channels combined have shown 1 hour.

This is why I like the ability to watch whatever I want. I still think it's unfair to require a cable or satellite subscription to watch. Old people & college students might have computers but not cable. But Comcast doesn't care.  TV is useless. Primetime is nothing but 8 hour old swim finals & 2-3 hours of Gymnastics. I like the swimming but little girls on Gym equipment? No thank you.

And as a huge Beatle fan I finally saw Paul McCartney's performance at the opening ceremonies thanks to YouTube. Sorry, but it's time to retire Sir Paul. That was awful.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

The Olympics Online

Watching the Olympics from the West Coast can be taxing. the time difference between here & London is 8 hours, so most stuff is over by the time we wake up. Plus network television tape delays the best stuff till night.

This time around the decision was made to live stream everything. Plus NBC is using it's cable partners to show as much as possible. Although there are still tape delays, even during the day. For instance the women's cycling road race started at 3:30 AM west coast time, but NBC showed it live to the East Coast but here it started at & 7, meaning taped for us.

As for streaming: everything live & then the video replay is available soon afterwards. One slight issue is that like in Beijing, the full replays have no announcers. These are what is referred to as a "raw feed". What this means is that each country's broadcaster takes the feed & inserts there own broadcast. I wish NBC did this to the feed, because some sports need announcers. I tried to watch the men's road race yesterday, but there just was no way to know what was going on.

But everything is there. Not being interested in Gymnastics, last night I was online watching first Women's Fencing (Foil), & then Men's Team Archery. Now that was interesting & quite entertaining. This morning after watching the conclusion of the cycling on NBC, I went online & watched the White Water Slalom (Canoe). There are several of these, canoe & kayak. Again, fun to watch.

I'll probably be watching a lot of stuff online. I don't need wall-to-wall Gymnastics. That's just an attempt to make sure women tune in. I'm a guy, so no thanks. But I do like to watch sports I never see any other time.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Redbox To Do Streaming

Yet another player in the streaming content biz. But will they be any better than Netflix or Amazon? I doubt it. I spent almost an hour on Netflix this afternoon trying to find something worthwhile to stream. I failed.

Until Netflix & Amazon & anyone else get rights to recent content, I'm not going to care. Half the movies on Netflix streaming I've never heard of. The other half are 20 years old or more. Bruce Lee movies? Arnold as Conan? Paper Moon, Chinatown? What is this: TCM? AMC?

Until the studios stop blocking the streaming of movies less than 10 years old, this will remain a secondary service. I know lots of people stream, but I can't figure out why. The selection is pathetic. I guess people just don't like to deal with physical media aka DVD's. The public won't be served until they let the studios know that this is not acceptable.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Directv & Viacom Settle Over Channels No One Watches

After two weeks the national nap is over: Viacom is back on Directv. I say the national nap because it was no nightmare. I looked at the list of channels Viacom owns & was underwhelmed. The only one I watch is Comedy Central & only for Jon Stewart. Nice job idiots.

So they wanted a 30% increase & got 20%. They shouldn't even get that. They're not Disney(ESPN), nor are they Time Warner(TCM,TNT,HBO). They are a small timer as far as viewership. So this was a slight glitch that will maybe cause a slight increase in the monthly cost of my service. Nothing new there.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Hulu To Demand Cable Access

Add Hulu to the list of outfits demanding authentification of cable subscriptions to view content. This adds to the list. NBC is going to require it to watch Olympic video this year, which it didn't 2 or 4 years ago. HBO Go does, but that's understandable since it's a premium network.

This is the corporations sticking their noses in where it doesn't belong. The "TV Everywhere" app model, which is a Comcast creation, is showing up everywhere. Up till now you could watch anything on Hulu without having to sign in. The same goes for ESPN 3. How long before that changes?

Monday, July 16, 2012

NBC/Comcast Verification For Olympic Video

One of the biggest changes to Olympic coverage has been the deal where Comcast bought NBC. Two years ago you could just go on NBCOlympics.com & choose whatever video you wanted to watch & that was it. Just like ESPN 3.

But this year there has been a major change. Comcast now owns NBC, & because they will be doing live streaming, which wasn't the case in Beijing or Vancouver, you have to sign in.

It's similar to HBO Go. You have to choose your service provider (Comcast, Directv, Time Warner, etc.), & then log in through that website. The site verifies that you are a customer & then OK's your ability to watch. I did it this afternoon so I don't have to do it later. Now since the games haven't started, I don't know if I will have to log in everytime, like I have to to use HBO Go.

My issue with this is that I understand logging in to use HBO Go. It's a premium channel, & they don't want non-subscribers watching their shows for free. But why do this for NBC programming? Yes, it's the Olympics, but so what. I didn't have to do this two years ago for the Winter Olympics or four years ago for the last summer games. There was over a thousand hours of video on line & I watched a lot of stuff not on TV.

The other issue is this means cord cutters won't be allowed to watch at all because you need a cable or satellite account to watch online.  Again I wonder if this would be the case if Comcast hadn't been allowed to buy NBC. Remember that the government put a lot of rules on Comcast to allow the deal. This was to avoid Comcast from say preventing Directv from having access to NBC programming.

So while I have the access, I wonder what will happen in the future.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Viacom To Cut Directv Access

Another month, another broadcaster/provider fight. This one is Viacom battling Directv over a 30% fee increase. 30%? Really?

Here's the worst part. I looked at the list of channels I will be losing. Uh, I only watch Comedy Central. And only for Jon Stewart, & he's on vacation this week. And I can watch his show on Hulu.

MTV? I haven't watched that since Clinton was President. Nick-no kids. BET? Don't think so. In other words, if Viacom was to be dropped permanently, I wouldn't care. Sorry Viacom. You screwed up. Very few people care. Even Nickelodeon's viewership has gone down recently. So they don't even have that hammer to use.  This may turn out to be an embarassing  mistake for Viacom.

Monday, July 9, 2012

DNS Changer Flops

After several months of horror stories, today went by without a hitch. The feds stopped protecting infected computers with re-directs, meaning supposedly thousands of computers lost access to the internet as of 12m e/t.

Well it's 7:45 ET/4:45 PT & nothing happened. Once again the media overblew something. What a surprise! This would be 2012's version of Y2K. OMG, the world will end for tech users! Well, nothing of the sort happened. As USA Today said. DNS Changer was last years malware. There's something worse out there now.

Possibly. But if you use the latest browser, with all security updates, all plug-ins up-to-date, updated & running anti-virus software & anti-malware software, & don't do dumb things like clicking on unknown attachments, you are probably going to be OK.

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Mozilla Stops Development Of Thunderbird

An internal e-mail from Mozilla states that tomorrow there will be an announcement as to the future of the open source e-mail client. Already people on the project have been moved to other projects. The line is "continued innovation of Thunderbird is not the best use of our resources given our ambitious organizational goals".

Not what exactly does that mean? Is Mozilla going to save the world? Not likely. It's a software company, nothing more, nothing less. While the argument is that people are moving to mobile or web-based clients (Gmail, I guess, although I've never used it that way), the fact remains that if you want a real e-mail client that collects all your mail from multiple addresses, you need a desktop client.

I use it because although my main e-mail is Gmail, I also have an e-mail address that my ISP gives me. So instead of logging in & out of those two, I let Thunderbird handle it. I have no desire to spend $150 on Office so I can use Outlook, or register with Microsoft so I can use Windows Live. Plus I don't know if that is any good.

Mozilla is saying, at least as of Friday, that it's not going away, they will still do security updates, but how long will that last? And will anyone out there in the open source community take over development or make a fork like Libre Office forked off of Open Office? Only time will tell.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

iGoogle To Be Discontinued

If iGoogle is your homepage (like it is mine), it was announced today that it will end in November of next year. Supposedly this is because of all the apps that do the same thing.

The main problem with this is that I'm not using a smartphone or an iPad. This is on my desktop. Once again, a software company forgets that not everyone uses a smartphone. Some of us actually have real computers.

Now yes, this is a year and a half down the road. But still, why do this? This is once again this mistaken notion that the desktop will cease to exist. This is a mistaken notion. Why go this route?

There are other desktop programs like iGoogle. Netvibes comes to mind. The reason I use it is because I can have all these sites that I use on a regular basis without having to create a huge number of bookmarks. Plus all these sites are on my home page & I can click on a gadget instead of having to go through a bunch of menus to access them.

Again this is explained by apps on Android. But I don't have a smartphone. This is my computer. But Google doesn't understand that. they simply want to make everyone get a smartphone I guess. I'm guessing there will be a backlash. But there are still those that think the future is smartphones. Sorry, I like my 18" monitor. I have no intention of going to a 3" screen.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Mac Users Offered Expensive Hotels By Travel Site

This story appeared today in the paper. Travel site Orbitz checks what OS their customers are using & suggests hotels based on that.

In other words, if you log on using a Mac, you will be offered more expensive flights & hotels than if you are using Windows. Now while it would be easy to make fun of Apple fanboys, the fact is this is discrimination. Orbitz has figured out how to make a killing. "Hey, you're using OSX. You can afford the $300 a night room. That guy using XP? Well, we're offering him the $100 a night hotel down the block. So even though I'm a Windows user, I think this is wrong.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Yet another Website That Hates Firefox

I am really really sick & tired of writing this same post on a regular basis. This time it's Pandora. Figure it out fools. And for the record, yes, I tried it on IE9. Guess what? It worked.

Every programmer who pulls this crap should be banned from the internet until they get their collective heads out of their unowhats. It's not that hard actually. Just code for the 2nd most popular browser in the world. Why is that so hard? 

I mean, are you really that stupid? But then again I've had this issue with so many different websites that I am tired of complaining about the idiocy. I can't even use Spotify because of their "must have Facebook account" crap. Maybe I could just start a fake Mark Zuckerberg account. Probably wouldn't matter. That probably can't run on Firefox either.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Microsoft Dropping Office Starter Edition

Just read that Microsoft will be phasing out Microsoft Office Starter Edition. It will not be available on Windows 8 machines. The stated explanation is a a bad experience on the new OS.

Let's be honest here. MS was hoping that once people used the starter edition, they would upgrade to the overly expensive full version. That didn't happen. I use Excel mostly, & it works fine. Yeah, it has a rotating ad at the bottom, but I barely notice it.

So Microsoft is suggesting the web apps. Really? The poor man's Google Docs? No I like having my stuff actually on my computer. Not "in the cloud". But again, this is a way of forcing people to spend $150-$200 on a full version of Office, which is the cash cow of Microsoft.

Even MS says I can keep my starter edition. But if I want to upgrade to Windows 8, then I lose it. Well, I really don't want to go to this silly tile based OS anyway. And if it's necessary, Open Office or Libre Office.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

UEFA's Hatred Of Tech Costs Ukraine (Maybe)

Today in the Euro 2012 match between England & Ukraine there was a non-goal by Ukraine. What I mean is that a Ukrainian player scored a goal but it wasn't counted. The official didn't see it, so no goal.

Why did this happen? Because UEFA which runs the European Championship doesn't believe in video review. Are you kidding me? Every major sport uses video. The NFL has the ever popular "ref under the hood" looking at replay of various things. All scoring plays are now automatically reviewed upstairs. The NHL has an official behind the net, who is responsible for turning on the red light, signifying a goal. Plus goals can be reviewed on video from the "war room" in Toronto.

As athletes get bigger & stronger they also get faster. Meaning it's hard for officials to keep up. That's why the increasing use of video replay. And today's was a big deal, because by losing Ukraine was booted out of the championships.

Now to be fair, there is a possibility that a goal wouldn't have counted anyway since another Ukrainian player was offsides. So two officials screwed up on the same play. And England had the same thing happen to them two years ago in the World Cup against Germany. Except that uncounted goal was even more blatant. And that also booted a team out of a major tournament because video replay wasn't allowed.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Microsoft To Announce B&N Tablet?

This is the latest rumor. My question is why? None of the tablets other than the iPad sell anything. This is going to be an Android based tablet. Also, why is MS bothering since Windows 8 will be coming out soon. It makes no sense to put out an Android tablet on 7, rather than a Metro based tablet using 8.

This looks like a half-you-no-what idea. Probably to steal some publicity from Apple. And why a tablet using Barnes & Nobles store, rather than the Microsoft/Metro store being developed for 8? This sounds like something that wasn't well thought out.

Well, I won't be buying one. I have a full computer. That works for me. The Kindle Fire has fallen behind the Galaxy Tab in sales, which is miles behind the iPad. And I have no intention of wasting $500-$900 on one of those.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Why I Don't Have A Cell Phone

Anybody see what Verizon did yesterday? Of course you did. They changed the way customers are charged, & no surprise, the new way is more expensive!

Instead of starting with a fee for minutes-say $40 for 700 minutes, everyone gets unlimited minutes for no charge. Hmmm. That sounds great! Wait a minute. You have to pay per device. $30 for a feature phone, $40 for a smart phone. Then it's $50 for a 1GB data plan. So right away, your monthly bill starts at $80-$90. A laptop or USB stick is $20, an iPad $10.

So if you have an iPhone & an iPad here's your bill: $50 for the 2 devices, $100 for 1GB on each device. In some cases the new plan is cheaper than the old plan, but you get less data. Me. I don't have a cell & don't intend to get one. I win!

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Open Culture: Free Public Domain Movies

This showed up on Digg yesterday. A list of 500 free movies online. A lot I have heard of, some I've actually seen like The Great Dictator w/Chaplin & The General w/Keaton. It's a place to find lots of old classics. Some are silent, but not all.

It actually has multiple links. Some of the movies are hosted on Open Culture, others it takes you to either Internet Archive or YouTube. Lot's of Chaplin shorts, plus his features. Famous works like Birth of a Nation, which I've seen twice, both times in school. Intolerance (on YouTube), Battleship Potemkin (silent Soviet classic), Hitchcock silents, film noir from the 40's, etc, etc, etc. I think everyone should check this out. Young people today think movies started last year, & won't watch anything older than Star Wars. Sad.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

NBC's Incompetent Live Viewer/DTV's Failure

I wanted to watch the French Open Women's Final. I didn't get up at 6AM yesterday to watch it. Namely because I had to be at work by 7AM. No DVR. So what are my choices? ESPN 3? Nope. Since it was broadcast on NBC no go.

NBC has a Livestream viewer but no matter what I typed in the search box, the only thing that comes up is a rebroadcast of the Men's final. Really NBC? Are you boycotting women's tennis or are you just that stupid to think no one would want to see Maria Sharapova complete a career grand slam?

Oooh, I know. Directv now has a web player. But when I choose the match guess what idiotic message I get? I can't watch because I don't subscribe to Tennis Channel. Attention Directv: The match was on NBC!

This is one more example why "cutting the cord" will never happen. Because media companies don't understand the internet, & don't want to learn.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

CBS Incompetent At Showing Video

After praising CBS yesterday for all the video, today I criticize them for idiocy. I attempted to watch Craig Ferguson's Friday show. Apparently CBS didn't want me to watch.

I only saw half the monologue because it was cut off for 3 commercials. Then during "check the tweets & e-mail", one of the funniest parts of the show, he was cut off for 4 ads. WTF!?

This is total incompetence. Do I have to record his show because you won't let me watch on line because of your stupidity? I see this all the time. Letterman interviews will be cut off for ads. Do you think we will continue to put up with this nonsense? Well, guess what? I sent an e-mail complaining about this crap. Nothing will happen, but they need to know that this is not acceptable.

You know what this is about don't you? CBS doesn't want you watching online. They don't make as much on the ads online as on air. Well you know what? I DON'T CARE!

What I'm Doing On The Web

Tomorrow I go back to work. So what do I do on my computer today?

Well this morning I ran my anti-virus scanner. Now Avira has a few issues it didn't used to have. Namely listing Microsoft updates as hidden objects. This started a month ago, & was a major issue. mainly because it was listing 70 objects. This went on for two weeks before it was fixed.  Now today it listed 7 objects & 7 warnings. And of course, doesn't tell you anything about the warnings.

Then I simply surfed on some sites. And then finally played Bejeweled 2 for a while. I used to play this a lot when i first got my computer, now maybe once a month. It's still fun, but I just don't play it that much. I am certainly not gonna pay $50 for Diablo III or any games of that type. I'm just not good at action games. I don't click fast enough or miss stuff.

TV on the internet? Yeah, I do that. Yesterday I watched episode 5 of season 2 of The Wire on HBO Go. I don't know why I didn't watch this when it was on. Some critics call this the best show ever. I won't go that far, but it's damn good. It's weird to see Chris Bauer play a serious important character like Frank Sobotka, head of the dockworkers & slightly dishonest character as opposed to what I'm used to seeing. Namely incompetent goofball cop Andy Bellefleur on HBO's vampire show True Blood, which BTW starts Sunday. that character is played mostly for laughs.

And speaking of laughs, CBS.com. That website has every show they broadcast. I will look tonight for last night's Letterman. I want to see his interview with Indy 500 champ Dario Franchitti. Should be a hoot, especially since Franchitti won by driving Rahal/Letterman driver Takuma Sato off the road.LOL. Last night just for a kick, I went on CBS' "classic shows" listing. I watched an episode of probably the greatest sitcom ever. Involved a seance. Hysterical. Lucy & Fred doing voices. Oh brother. 

Maybe I will watch a podcast today. Or find a decent French Open match on ESPN's site.

Monday, June 4, 2012

What's The Big Deal About Amazon?

Everyone talks about how great Amazon is. I've never bought anything through the site. Here's my experience.

I'm in the market for new shorts. Or rather, I was. So I went on Amazon to look at what they had. First off, I'm 58, so I don't need cargo shorts. Plus I think they are really ugly. Who needs that many pockets. If I had something in everyone of those pockets, I would weigh 20 pounds more.

I have a pair of fabric shorts. I wear those around the house. I'm uncomfortable wearing those out. There's no place to put my wallet, & I just don't think I want to wear those to the store, although I see young people wearing especially basketball shorts out. But then again, look at what else they will wear.

No I'm looking for dress or at least outdoor shorts. So again, I go on Amazon. Through 20-30 pages what do I see? A hundred variations on the same two styles: cargo or khaki. In only maybe two different colors. All between $20 & $50. Regardless of company. Unless they are denim, then the price goes even higher & I don't want jeans shorts, although I own two pairs of Levi jeans.

So I go to the mall. Same thing, although the prices can be even higher. $70 for O'Neills? Really? Same price as Ralph Lauren Polo. At least at Macy's. Finally I get a pair of Wrangler khaki's at Target for $12. Yes, I said $12. Why was Amazon unable to beat that price. The fact remains that online still can't match looking around.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

California Pushing For High Speed Rail

Once again Governor Jerry Brown is trying to push through his version of a "bullet train".  Two problems: 1. The state is broke. And 2. It will take 17 years to complete. 17 years?

The first section is Merced to Bakersfield. Uh, sure. I guess because of the geography this would be the cheapest. But if you want this to succeed, shouldn't it start in a major metropolitan area like The Bay Area to Sacramento, or LA to San Diego. That would make it a success. I just don't see a lot of use from a Central Valley focused line.

I wonder if this was well thought out beforehand. When you think of it, the Bay Area already has a rapid transit system in place. Would it be possible to utilize those lines as a start & build out farther? I mean, BART goes to Pittsburg & Dublin. Could that line be extended as high speed rail to the Central Valley, instead of a completely new line in addition to the BART line? It would certainly be cheaper. This means less track would have to be laid. I'm no engineer, so I'm not sure about any of this. I just know that waiting until 2029 won't happen, especially with California politics plus the economy. And with that date, I will never use it.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Museum Reads My Blog

It seems that every time I write something about a particular place I've visited, I then get page views from that site. it happened again today.

Yesterday I wrote about my visit to the Tech Museum, & this morning StatCounter had several listings from The Tech accessing my blog. This isn't the first time. See, commercial organizations are big enough to have their own internal IP address. Last time this happened was last year when I wrote about my visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Again their internal servers accessed my blog.

Now there isn't anything wrong with this. I assume they regularly search for web references to themselves. Just to see if there are criticisms, so they can improve. That's not what I do. Love the Tech, love MBA, love the Computer History Museum. But they want to know what people think, & searching personal blogs is one way of finding out.

It would be nice to get comments, but in 2-3 years of writing this blog I've only received 4 comments. Really. If someone could tell me how to improve it, I would. But I will just keep doing what I'm doing.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

The Tech Museum Upgrades

As a native of Silicon Valley, I regularly visit the Tech Museum in downtown San Jose. I hadn't been there in a while. I didn't want to go there Memorial Day, figuring there would be a million kids there, so I went today instead. Guess what? There were a million kids anyway. LOL. School groups mostly.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that they have changed some of the exhibits. If you go somewhere enough times, you get bored with seeing the same things every trip. And since this museum has been here a few years, I've seen some exhibits more times than I care too.

Downstairs now has an exhibit on electric vehicles, including an electric truck, plus a hundred year old electric car! The internet info sections have been removed, probably on the idea that everyone knows this stuff. No more creating your own website, since anyone can do that at home anyway. I mean, that's what this blog is.

I would say that half the stuff is aimed a kids now. Which isn't a bad idea. You want them to understand the technology. Still, the tech tags that were supposed to create a web based souvenir didn't work for me. I used the tag at several exhibits, but when I got home, only one thing showed up. Fail.

The IMAX dome theater is a major attraction. This is claimed as the largest one in the west. I watched a film on the Arctic. Mostly followed Polar Bears. Huge screen, you feel part of the movie because of the immense size. Could have done without the awful Paul McCartney songs. Yes I'm a huge Beatle fan, but these were just bad recent songs that detracted from the film.

I was somewhat amused to see that there will be a special Mythbusters exhibit this fall. It will apparently be an extra, probably in the hall next door, like the Star Trek exhibit was a few years ago. As a fan of the show for several years I will certainly be visiting that. I noticed that there were a couple of small exhibits that used the two hosts on video. That made me smile.

This is a top notch museum. I highly recommend it along with the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, & the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Guardian Article On Browsers Fails

Yet another article on worldwide browser usage has failed because of the refusal to recognize Firefox.

An article in the Guardian refutes the StatCounter claim that Google Chrome is now the most used browser. It uses monthly rather than weekly stats. Fine. but then it uses something called the Open Heat Map to show what browser is #1 in every country, regardless of how far ahead it is of #2. Again, by itself this is fine.

What's not fine is this: The map isn't viewable in Firefox! Now this isn't the first time I've come across this out of touch behavior. In fact it happens way too much. But in an article on tech, & browsers in particular? Mind you, I use NoScript & made sure to allow all scripts on the page, & there are a ridiculous amount of scripts on the map. It still wouldn't load. So I loaded Internet Explorer. What a surprise. The map loaded immediately. I'm guessing that it also loads in Chrome.

I actually envision a day where I will be forced to install Chrome regardless of my dislike of Google's data collection, just because lazy website developers won't write for Firefox. They code for Chrome because it's Google. Mozilla shouldn't be a problem because it's been the #2 browser for years, but these programmers don't like having to code for separate browsers. But Google is so big that they do it.

Here's the kicker. While IE is still #1 in the US & Canada & the Pacific Region, Firefox is #1 in most of Europe & half of Africa. IE is #1 in China, Firefox #1 in Indonesia (largest Muslim country in the world) , Chrome is #1 in Russia.

So I don't know if the culprit is The Guardian or Open Heat Map. My guess is the latter. Amazing that a European news organization ignores something popular in it's local area.

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Outdated Tech In Recent Films

Watching old movies can cause snickers based on outdated technology. Not so much on really old movies because you expect it based on knowledge or experience of that time. It's more recent films or TV shows that stand out. Like watching an episode of Miami Vice & chuckling at the outrageously large mobile phone Don Johnson uses.


A few days ago I watched the first Mission Impossible movie, made in 1996 ( I didn't realize it was that old). Tom Cruise spends a lot of time on his laptop in this movie. In doing research his character uses Usenet. This software based system has been superseded by internet forums, which don't require downloaded software. Plus you don't have to register to read posts.


Of course another reason for Usenet is that Google didn't exist in 1996. Or Wikipedia for that matter.


The other out of date technology you see in the movie is how files are kept. One plot point has Cruise, Ving Rhames & Jean Reno stealing data from the CIA involving the identities of covert agents. The data is placed on floppy discs! Mind you, a 3 1/2" floppy held 1.44 MB of data, as opposed to a CD holding 700 MB. But of course, in 1996 no computer had a CD drive. So you had to have lots of floppies.


So that's what you get when you watch a tech heavy movie from this period. Another movie I remember being out, although I never saw it was "The Net" with Sandra Bullock. I'm afraid I would probably laugh at that one.

 

Monday, May 21, 2012

Facebook IPO A Disaster

All the hype in the world can't hide a failure. Friday, after months of pre-release  stories on the Facebook IPO, it came out at $38 & at closing was at $38.23. Not exactly a major success. Now comes Monday morning & the stock tumbles even more. Ooops!

Within the first hour & a half, it fell to $33. The loss equaled Mark Zuckerberg's wealth. Think his new wife is having second thoughts?

This is supposedly one of the biggest, richest companies in the world. Despite the fact that it doesn't produce anything. Yeah, it makes money from advertising. And it has all your information. Which is, of course, the reason I deleted my account. I am now on NO social media. Not Facebook, not Twitter, not Google +.

This is a warning to other sites of this kind. Don't try to get rich off of your users. It doesn't work that way. Within five years Facebook will be forgotten, like My Space & the ones before that. Remember Geo Cities?

Sunday, May 20, 2012

PC World's Tech Tips

I'm really not good at this, so I was pleased with the suggestions on PC World's website. I was unaware of the stuff one can do with the windows key. Like open a Word document. Actually hit the windows key to open the start menu, then hold the windows key down while typing "wo", which opens a new Word document. that's cool. Couldn't find a quick way to open a new Excel document. maybe I will look in my Windows 7 book.

See, this is why I read so many different tech sites. There is always something useful in one of them.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

CBS-The Columbia Blow things up System

OK. This isn't exactly tech, but I had to get this in somehow. It appears that every final episode of a CBS drama this year (meaning this week) will have an explosion. Oh goody. Did CBS hire Adam & Jamie to write the final episodes of NCIS, NCIS LA, Hawaii 5-0 & Criminal Minds? 

I'm disappointed that the final task on Amazing Race didn't have explosions. And I kinda wish an explosion would have kept Colton from talking on the Survivor reunion. LOL. Hey, even Tim Allen had a tank on his sitcom! And that's on ABC.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Ars Updates Look

Ars Technica has changed its look. The problem is that it now looks like the Verge. Ultra busy front page with way too many stories. Supposedly there is a way to go back to the old style, but when I tried to use it, there was no change.

A lot of tech sites don't seem to understand that if we don't like what you've done, we'll go elsewhere. there are plenty of tech sites out there. Gawker is my pet hate. They got rid of the "blog view". Firefox has an add-on that worked for awhile, but then the multiple updates to the browser broke the extension. So no more Lifehacker or Gizmodo.

Now I guess I will try the new Ars & see if the articles are easy to find. Sometimes The Verge has good stuff. the problem with that sites setup is they have a tendency to have the same article listed several times. That's a waste of space. hopefully Ars won't go that route.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Threw Out My Printer Today

After having my HP 1660 printer for a couple of years I finally gave up. I spent 1/2 hour trying to get this POS to print ONE FREAKING PAGE!!!

I have had an issue for some time. It will say "no paper in tray". Well that's bogus (copyright John C Dvorak). There is plenty of paper in the tray. It just doesn't want to print. So I go into the HP solution center. "Unplug printer, then replug in", "unplug USB cord". Well I did all that & that just made it worse. Not only would it not pick up the paper, it finally just stopped working at all.

What do I mean? Before you could hear the cartridges moving to the center of the printer right before the printer would attempt to pick up the paper. Now it wasn't moving at all. Thanks HP. So now I have about 400 sheets of unused printer paper. Well I guess I have an unending supply of scratch paper. I will never buy another printer of ANY brand.

Monday, May 7, 2012

SJ Merc Writer Cuts Cord/Will Find Nothing Online

Chris O'Brien, the technology writer for the San Jose Mercury News had a column today about getting rid of cable. This is a big thing among certain geeks who think they can watch everything online. They soon find out that's not possible.

So he pays $8 a month for Hulu Plus, only to find out he can only watch 30 Rock online. Then he pays $99 for Apple TV. Now comes the hard part.

As a Directv subscriber, I can tell you what you can't watch without a cable or satellite service.

Nothing on HBO. You need an HBO subscription to watch their shows online. The current seasons aren't even available on Netflix or iTunes.

Nothing on Discovery. The network doesn't believe in streaming. Mythbusters is available on iTunes soon after the initial broadcast, but $3 an episode adds up.

No live pro sports. Well, Tennis is available on ESPN 3, but that's it. No Baseball, No NFL (except MNF on ESPN 3), No NBA or NHL. The local carrier for all pro sports except the NFL doesn't stream. The Olympics WILL be available on NBC Olympics.com like last time, & almost all college football games are on ESPN 3 live & video for replay. Except of course SEC games on CBS, which doesn't stream sports.

CNN doesn't stream, local news isn't online. That leaves network TV which is on Hulu or the network site. Hulu holds shows back 8 days, CBS has there shows up the next day. Last night Amazing Race 2 hour finale is up now.

So it's not as easy as some would have you believe. Network is there, but not cable. As a sports fan, I could never do it (Give up Niner games? Hell no!). Face it. The advertisers are the main reason this won't happen. Information channels like Discovery & NatGeo should, & of course, the news channels should. but they can't see the worth in it.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

No Script Tries To Con Me

I try to make sure my computer is safe from viruses & other bad stuff. This is why I use No Script & AdBlock Plus. But No Script is a pain. It updates as often as iTunes & tries to get you to install something called Registry Booster.

This supposedly corrects registry errors created from downloading programs. It's listed as a Microsoft Certified Partner. Sounds good doesn't it? Of course after you download this scanner it tells you that it can only fix 15 errors, & you have to buy the program to fix the rest. Shame on you Giorgio!

I said Giorgio because that's the guy who developed & operates the site that makes No Script. He's a Sicily based programmer. He should know better. We Firefox people will investigate crap you try to get us to install. 

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Printer Doesn't Like Office

I have had this problem for awhile. Every time I try to print something I did on Word or Excel my printer says "no paper in tray". This is a lie. There is plenty of paper loaded.

There seems to be a problem with the software because if you go on HP's boards you find a lot of this issue being discussed. Plus videos showing you how to fix it. First step: unplug the printer to reboot it. This is also how to fix internet speed on my modem.

Apparently this is a software issue. So why hasn't it been fixed? Because if I try to print something directly off a website I have few problems. It's only Microsoft Office that I have problems with.

These are issues that shouldn't exist. There are multiple threads on the HP support forums on this. They involved whether the paper is jammed or bad, or the rollers are dirty. I barely use my printer so I don't think it is dirty. Plus, if it didn't have these issues I would use it a lot more. The paper is fine, new out of the package. So again, I need to reset the printer. Why? This is a cheap printer, but it doesn't matter. People are having this issue with more expensive ones. Shouldn't happen.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Hulu Desktop

On my computer I have two ways of using Hulu. Via the website, or through a desktop application that came with my computer.

My problem is that it has some issues. Like when you are browsing through the listings, it plays trailers, & there is no way to disable them. Why would you do this? It's annoying, so I am forced to lower the volume on my speakers so I don't have to hear them, but I can't pause them. What a stupid idea. This doesn't happen on the website.

Movies are listed alphabetically. That's an improvement from the website, which doesn't seem to have any plan at all. Unless it's like Netflix, which is in order of release to the site. But there are so many movies, most of which are junk, that trying to find one worth watching is a real bear. I ended up watching a MST3K flick, not the first I've watched recently.

I mostly watch TV on Hulu, since recent episodes are available. I wish Discovery Channel would put their shows on there, or at least on their own site.

Monday, April 23, 2012

Cell Phone Recycler Rips Me Off

After 2 or 3 years of not using my prepaid cell phone more than once a week, I decided to stop buying cards for it. Anyway it was getting harder to find the cards . So it took all the money loaded on it.

My local mall has a machine that recycles phones & other gadgets.  You put a sticker on it, put it in the machine, it searches for the model & decides what to pay you. Well it correctly identified my phone ( a Samsung, complete with picture), & said it was worth $1. Whoopee! A whole dollar! Are you kidding me?

I'm guessing I could go somewhere else & get more, but you know what? I don't really care. I let the machine keep it, & took the bill. But I wonder how many other people say " uh, I don't think so". This is a failure.