Pocket Universe

A breast-powered iPod? Rarely does an article encapsulate so many of my interests.

I was considering liveblogging during the Macworld 2008 keynote, but then I decided it would be easier to direct you to one of the other blogs already doing it. So if you’re interested, point your browser at Engadget for their usually excellent keynote coverage.

This is probably old news to most of you, but I got a new TV! Through a series of circumstances that are best left to the imagination, I ended up with the money and spousal approval to upgrade my current television. Almost overnight, I went from this:

…to this:

Yes, I am now the proud owner of a Sony SXRD 55A2020 55" HDTV. It has a resolution of 1080p, and makes my 13-year-old 27" TV look like…well, a 13-year-old 27" TV. Granted, it was in excellent condition with a really nice picture, but having a larger TV with more controls makes a world of difference. Just to drive home the contrast, here is my traditional movie-watching experience before, and after:

While I was taking these pictures with my digital camera, I discovered that when I zoomed all the way in on my old TV, the image is the same size as my new TV when zoomed all the way out. Notice the huge differences in detail, contrast, and color fidelity (click for a larger view):

And when I zoom all the way in on my new TV, well…

So in short, I am very happy with my purchase. If you’re in the market for a big TV with impeccable picture quality and stellar reviews, I would highly recommend it.

The best live coverage of Apple’s “The Beat Goes On” special event can be seen at Engadget. So far they have announced 99 cent ringtones, new Shuffle colors, and a new iPod Nano.

Update: Other announcements were the renamed iPod Classic in 80GB ($249) and 160GB ($349) models; the iPod Touch, which is basically an iPhone without the phone, with 8GB ($299) and 16GB ($399) models; and an iPhone price drop from $599 to $399.

Three hundred and ninety nine. Dollars.

They’re going to sell a million of these things. Excuse me…ANOTHER million.

I would have to see it in action, but just based on the video, content-aware image resizing seems almost magical.

Today Apple announced three revolutionary products: a widescreen video iPod with a touch screen, a phone, and a revolutionary internet communication device. The twist is, all of these are the same device: the iPhone. I’ll let you read all about it on the site, but basically it’s a small device running Mac OS X that has full iPod capabilities (including a CoverFlow view), a phone with a great user interface that syncs with your contacts on you computer, and a Safari web browser, Google Maps, email, and other widgets like stocks and weather. Oh, and it has a two megapixel camera built in.

It looks really, really nice, and as someone who has always been unhappy with my cell-phone user interface, I am excited about getting a device that actually has a good interface for making and receiving calls. It also fades the music automatically when a call comes in, lets you conference multiple callers together, provides non-linear access to voicemail, and gives you full access to Google Maps, including satellite views and direct dialing of found locations. (During the keynote, Steve found the nearest Starbucks, then called them and ordered 4000 lattés to go.) Add to that a full web browser, and I think I may need to switch carriers. I wonder if I can get out of my contract early.

When I read truth, I love to share it. And thanks to 43 Folders, I found a fantastic article about living a backlogged life. The gist of the article is this: At one point in time, if we missed something, it was gone: a phone call, a TV show, whatever. But now, thanks to the wonders of technology, these time sinks are now collected and sorted and aggregated for future enjoyment. Instead of letting technology free us, it has removed our ability to let go of the past.

As I’ve been trying to get my life organized, this point particularly resonated with me. As I try to get my life organized, I have realized that the more you hang on to the past, the more difficult it is to enjoy the present. The more I worry about sorting and deleting and responding to my old email, the less time I spend actually working on things that I need to do today. And sure, I have hundreds of hours of shows recorded on the TiVo, but which are the ones that I watch as soon as they are recorded, and which are the ones I think that I might get to someday, maybe?

This has also affected my life in a purely financial sense. A long time ago, I read a great book by the Motley Fool entitled You Have More Than You Think. The authors offered a piece of advice about purchasing luxury items which has great application to daily life: Don’t buy something new unless you’ve used up what you already have. For example, don’t buy a magazine at the newsstand if you have a magazine you haven’t read sitting on the coffee table at home. Don’t buy a new book if you have a shelf of unread books in your office. It’s really a simple rule, and it’s very lenient if you’re using what you have. I have been trying to follow that rule, in general, but recently I have gotten very specific in applying it.

A few weeks ago, I was feeling very poor, and feeling like my spending was getting out of control. In an effort to get ahead of the game, I decided to go into lockdown. I have so many unread books sitting around, and so many unwatched DVDs, and so many unplayed video games, that I could literally not buy any media for probably a year, and still have plenty to do in my free time. So, until I have made some headway on what I already own, I am not buying anything new. I expect that at some point, something will come along for which I will bend these rules a bit, but I hope that will be the exception rather than the norm. Until then, I hope to find a new appreciation for the things I already own. Maybe I’ll finally get to that great book that I’ve heard so much about, or that videogame series that I never finished. It’s as if my entire life were leading up to this point. I’ve collected all this crap my whole life; time to start enjoying it.

So the author of this review? I don�t really like him. He�s kind of an Apple-basher, and seems to frequently make indefensible statements about the Macintosh. For example, he once said that even if Apple introduces a technology first and Microsoft follows with their version later, Microsoft is the real innovator, since they brought the technology to more users. Thus, Apple is retroactively (and paradoxically) stealing from Microsoft.

Using this logic, he claimed that Apple stole their Spotlight search technology from Microsoft�s plans for Vista…even though Spotlight has been out for nearly a year, and Vista won�t be out until at least 2007. You see, Microsoft announced that they were doing something, so for all intents and purposes, anyone who implements that idea later must have stolen from Microsoft. Of course, this completely ignores the reality that Microsoft often announces their upcoming technology plans far, far in advance, while Apple tends to wait until they are closer to shipping. But that doesn�t stop him from bashing Apple just the same.

All this is merely prelude to his preview of Windows Vista, where he basically rips Microsoft a new one. It�s worthwhile reading if you want to know about the new version of Windows, or even if you just want to gloat a little. No one will blame you.

Ask, and it shall be given unto you! No sooner did we start a discussion on price comparisons between Macs and equivalent PCs, then someone comes along with an article stating that the equivalent Dell laptop is $1000 cheaper than the MacBook Pro. Of course, someone on the Mac side did a more detailed comparison, and found that the MacBook Pro is actually very price-competitive. Then the next day, when Apple announces that they will be shipping machines with better performance than previously expected, he updated the comparison. All are interesting reads.

Edit: The first Macworld article also has links to three previous articles comparing the Mac Mini with a comparably-equipped Dell. Those are also worth reading, as they cover other issues such as configuring hardware, specifications, and the value of certain “intangibles,” such as bundled software.

I�ve mentioned Delicious Library before, created by Wil Shipley. Now that Mike is leaving the company to go work for Apple, that leaves Wil as the last remaining founder. You can read a fantastic interview with Wil Shipley on DrunkenBlog. Very interesting stuff.

Let�s see, where to start? First, read this article at iPodLounge which discusses the potentially explicit content on Apple�s podcast directory. (You can also read Jobs� take on the issue at ABC News.) Then for a rebuttal, you can read Parent your own kids! at The Bynk Zone. And finally, scroll down and read the comments, where yours truly makes (I believe) a strong case against Welch�s screed on The Bynk Zone.

If you aren’t reading Daring Fireball on a regular basis, you should be. His latest essay is a discussion of the podcasting phenomenon, with some interesting insights on why Apple chose to get into the market sooner rather than later, and what it means for other companies who want to adopt a similar technology, but without the brand-specific moniker.

Ever heard of John Titor? Me neither. This article details some of the specifics of his visit to our time, along with general advice for other such visitors. Pay special attention to the links early on in the article, as they contain some fascinating information.

Man, those EverQuest guys sure are geeks. Not cool, like we World of Warcraft guys.

The only thing I can say about this rumor from Reuters is: huh?

Apparently, the iPod is the music player of choice on the Microsoft campus. I just love the corporate response to this trend. Microsoft, if you guys were creating better devices, maybe your employees would start using them. Just a thought.

I have two TiVo secret codes to share, one that I use regularly, and one that I�m about to try.

The first one is Select-Play-Select-3-0-Select. (Enter this during a recorded show for best results.) If you entered the code correctly, the box will ding three times. This code changes the Skip to End button into a 30-second skip. Really, I can�t live without this one.

The second code is Slow-0-Record-Thumbs Up. This enables you to change sort modes for your recorded programs: by date recorded (the default), by expiration date, and alphabetically. The nice thing is that you can switch sort options on the fly, just by using the 1, 2, or 3 keys on your remote. Anyway, this one should be useful if you have a lot of shows to sort through.

You can find both of these codes at DBSTalk, and a more-thorough (but harder to read) list is available at the TiVo Community Forum. Try them out when you get a chance. Those TiVo guys really think of everything!

I guess if youre Bill Gates, youd better be careful when you give a technology demo at CES. Not only did the Media Center crash, but the Xbox had the Blue Screen of Death as well. Hopefully next weeks Macworld Expo keynote will go much better.

Wired has a great article on the science and artwork behind Mona Lisa�s smile.

Some of you may know that HP is shipping their own branded version of the Apple iPod. However, one twist that HP is providing is user-printable tattoos (HP…always gotta work printers in there somehow!) so that users can customize the look of their iPod to match their moods. I have to admit, it�s an intriguing idea. Look for images of Flame and other tattoo ideas at the official website, and you can find images of pre-made tattoos at HP�s website and the Mac Observer. You can even try out a flash demo of the new tattoos! I actually think this is a pretty cool idea. Personally, I�d walk around with a 90125 iPod, or maybe a Vapor Trails iPod.

Before I get to my full E3 report, I wanted to share some news which will be a comfort to those of you who, like me, were worried about the future of TechTV (cf. TechTV Is Dead), and specifically, X-Play.

While at E3, I ran into Adam and Morgan who were in between filming segments for their show. After Morgan blew me off when I tried to talk to her (�We�re doing appearances later today. Hey, can you give this guy an appearance card?�), I did get a chance to chat with Adam. When I asked him about the future of TechTV in general, and X-Play specifically, he said, �I don�t know how much I can say, but I wouldn�t worry about it.� A little mysterious, but somewhat hopeful.

So now, the new network (creatively dubbed �G4TechTV,� which just rolls off the tongue) has a FAQ, appropriately called the G4TechTV FAQ. Said FAQ allays many of my fears. The salient points are:

1. Contrary to speculation, the new network will be available on DirecTV, among other providers, as opposed to only being available on Comcast cable providers.

2. Many of the best G4 shows will be retained by G4TechTV, including Fresh Gear, The Screen Savers, Unscrewed, and (yay!) X-Play.

…uh, and I guess that�s about it for new information. Still in question: Will any of the talent from G4 make the big move down to L.A. to work on the same shows? Will G4TechTV retain some studios in San Francisco so that the current shows can continue with the current hosts? Hopefully more information will be available soon. I�ll be checking G4TechTV for more news, and I suggest you do the same. And if you�re concerned, call the 800 number they have listed. Hopefully it will provide some comfort.

First Angel is cancelled, and now this. Pretty soon, I will no longer have any reason to own a TV. From Leo Laporte’s site, The Laporte Report: Comcast Fires TechTV Staff. They are merging TechTV with G4, which does little good for those people who don‘t have G4 (which, at last count, is everyone I know), firing most of the staff, and keeping about 100 people, as long as they are willing to relocate to Los Angeles. I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do without my daily fix of X-Play. Now I’m really depressed.

So as you may know, I just got back from working at NAB, the National Association of Broadcasters convention. I was there for two days, and worked two morning shifts in the Apple booth. The rest of the day I had free time to wander around the show floor, but I actually spent most of my time back in the Apple booth, watching the demo presentations and trying out the new apps. Here’s a quick summary of what caught my eye:

Both of my shifts were spent demonstrating Final Cut Pro HD. I had to fake my way through a few things, because I work primarily on Final Cut Express, but overall I think I was able to show the product off really well. The HD support is excellent, from 720p24 all the way up to 1080i60. You could even play back HD video from a Powerbook hard drive, which is an impressive feat considering the video bandwidth. On the dual-processor 2Ghz G5, it can run four HD streams simultaneously in real time. But overall, the product pretty much sells itself. I was especially pleased by all of the people who stopped by raving about how great the product is. You can get a top-of-the-line G5, a 23-inch Apple Cinema HD Display, and the Final Cut Pro HD software for $6000. For a full HD editing system, that is an amazing deal.

Motion was the application that impressed me the most. It’s a little difficult understand the full scope of the program without actually seeing it, but I’ll try to explain it. Basically, it’s a full-motion animation and titling application, with behavioral animation and real-time previewing. So for example, you could set the title text for your movie, then apply a Fade In behavior, use Throw to have the text get thrown in from offscreen, then have another object come in and knock the letters away using real-world physics and simulated gravity. Or you could easily create a field of butterflies that constantly fly around another object. Then you change the color of some of the butterflies, add a Glow filter to others, maybe add a Blur effect…and you can do all this in real-time, while the butterflies are continuously flying around. It is really spectacular, and you should see it. Motion is expected to ship this summer.

Even if you don’t know what Shake is, you have definitely seen movies that used the software. In fact, the last seven Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects were all made with Shake. (For the record, the movies were Titanic, What Dreams May Come, The Matrix, Gladiator, and all three Lord of the Rings movies, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King.) Again, look at the web page to get more details, but basically Shake is a compositing program that can handle movie-resolution projects. They did a demo at the show using plates from a scene in Return of the King: They started with a 4K (4000 lines of resolution) background plate of Mordor, added in an animation of the Eye of Sauron, punched up the glow on the top of the volcano, added smoke effects, model shots of the two main gates, and animated orcs on the gates. Then, they composited in lots of 2K plates of actors in orc costumes, shot against a blue screen, which were then matted out, color corrected, and placed in the scene. To fill out the back of the crowd, they had tons of shots of computer-generated orcs and trolls that were all composited together, along with rotoscoped outlines and a height map that was used to put in additional dust and haze effects. Then all of the elements were color corrected and adjusted to fit in the film frame. If you have any interest in film effects at all, it was a beautiful sight to behold. I even recorded the demo on video, so I will be able to show it to all of my friends.

I actually didn’t spend much time looking at DVD Studio Pro, and I don’t know many of the new features that were added for this release. The only one I can remember offhand is the graphical display of your DVD layout. They did show a full workflow demonstration, where a video was edited in Final Cut Pro HD, titles were added with LiveType and Motion, music was added with Logic Pro, then everything was output to Compressor to prepare it for DVD, then those files were imported into DVD Studio Pro where addition menu effects were added using Motion, and then the entire project was burned to a DVD. And this all took place in about a half hour, maybe less. It was truly a wonder to behold. I haven’t begun to scratch the surface of what DVD Studio Pro can do, but it really is easy to use and extremely powerful. I hope I can get many more chances to use it in the future.