It’s Been Awhile…
I have not posted in a bit, because quite have been busy. Life happens! But I have added a gallery section to the site for my photography. It is in the beginning stages so it will evolve as I add sections. I worked on this for quite a bit, trying to find a display that I like and was easy to use. Please enjoy I will post announcements as I add sections.
Software by another name
Techspansion closed down recently and with closed down and with that ceased sales of Visual Hub, the best video conversion tool around. But I am excited to hear that it will be reborn as a SourceForge application. The new name will be TranscoderRedux and can be found on SourceForge but currently it is limited to developers. But we can hope for an application release soon.
Poladroid the new Polaroid
It has been awhile but I have something fun. For those that are able to to remember Polaroid images this is a great trip down memory lane. I never put much stock in the image or longevity quality of Polaroid images but that is what makes them endearing. They are a part of history and I would bet that anyone over the age of thirty-five has some Polaroid family photos.
This application Poladroid not be confused with the company Polaroid, produces images themed in this nostalgic style. Below is a sample. This image was taken when I was up-north with friends a few years ago and seemed to fit the situation.
Before using Poladroid
After Poladroid
Net Neutrality: Why no public concern? - Part 2
Will Industry pull the plug on open Internet access?
Many other stakeholders would like to have regulations enacted on Internet traffic. The entertainment companies that produce media content are interested in protecting their works. There are several stories that have covered the trading of video and music content. The media companies want to protect their profits by restricting the illegal trading their content through inspecting internet traffic. AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner have all lobbied against Net Neutrality and could be a gatekeeper position without pro-neutrality regulation.
Many companies have announced support of Net Neutrality. Google, Amazon.com, Ebay, Microsoft and many content producing organizations have made officially statements. Educational related institutions such as the Educause and the ALA (American Library Association) have made pro-neutrality statements as have journalist groups. The FCC has taken a pro-neutrality stance as well, reiterating the need to stand up for consumers rights. Representative Edward Markey (D-Mass.) has sponsored a bill, HR 5353, that requires;
High-speed access providers, primarily cable and phone companies, to adhere to nondiscriminatory principles, while still managing their networks to combat spam, child pornography, illegally distributed movies, software and TV shows.
This subject affects the general public but many are unaware of the impact for themselves, if they are even aware of the subject at all. When an ISP’s customers access the Internet, the consumer does not apply much thought to the choses of content they request. Information and service can be requested without thought but what if access to Google, the search engine, was restricted or throttled by the ISP. If it were decided that Google searches were taking up to many resources on the ISP’s network, it’s services could simply be restricted. Then the ISP could offer Google search services as a premium service to consumers and require additional charges for access to Google. This is just one example of a service that could be restricted but “Google search” could be replaced with any service that the ISPs could up-sell to the consumer. This model is similar to the cable television where there is a basic service and then charges for the more desirable services. Is it better for consumers to use this model or a dumb network model? The “dumb” network model is where consumer pays for a connection and data is transmitted through the network from point-to-point with no regard to the content. Consumers have become accustomed to little or no restriction to their Internet access but severe restrictions are a real possibility. This also becomes a social issue because if people cannot afford access to the premium information we will create another division to hold down those less fortunate. Consumers need to be concerned because if Network Neutrality is shelved they will be affected, and the results are not likely to be in the consumer’s favor.
Since the FCC ruling against Comcast they have made a few more anti-neutral moves. They are challenging the ruling from the FCC in the U.S. District court of Appeals in Washington D.C., and I am sure that this will take a few months at least. In additions Comcast has announced a new bandwidth cap for their customers of 250Gb, wheich they stated would only affect 1% of customers. I agree that currently, this would affect only a few but it appears that this is a proactive action limit. As customer start to consumers more online media over the next few years their usage will creep closer if not exceed this limit and Comcast will have set previous prescient that will be more difficult to appose. How do consumer combat these restrictions? Easy, with their wallets! They can purchase their services elsewhere.
The public needs to become familiar with this issues because it has lasting impact for consumers finances and future possibilities of services. This is a complex issue with a scope that goes well beyond what can be discussed here but it need serious study and review. If the content and services are filtered by a few companies this is likely going to inhibit innovation. This is also a First Amendment issue by restricting free speech communication between consumers and independent content producers on the Internet. But if no filtering is implemented or it is limited many more options will be available for consumers and companies alike. The Internet has been compared to the “Wild West” which is not inaccurate. This phrase conjures up visions of exploration and innovation. The western exploration was a exciting time for the country and we now have similar opportunities with the explosion of the Internet. This is not the time to restrict innovation that may inhibit the growth of the U.S. markets and consumer experience.
Net Neutrality: Why no public concern? - Part 1
Network Neutrality is a complicated issue with many stakeholders and angles of concern. A majority of the United States population has some form of Internet access and currently this access is generally not filtered for content that the consumer is requesting. Filtering the content of the data being transmitted between consumer and network resource is what some parties would like to implement. Net (Network) Neutrality defined implies that there should be no filtering or limitations set on transmitted content and applications, that Internet connectivity should be treated like a raw public resource. In other words, “Network neutrality is an umbrella term for the debate over whether the FCC or Congress needs to spell out what broadband networks — essentially, an entity like Comcast.net that provides an Internet connection to customers — can and can’t do in managing Internet traffic to their customers”. The filtering model would be more akin to cable television, where the consumer would get charged extra if the wanted unrestricted access to a specific Internet site like Google. This issue is of concern for many parties including the movie industry, music industry, websites, mass media, Internet service providers and most importantly the consumer. While the media has coved this issue extensively, the general public does not seem engaged in this debate. This is a complex issue that deserves a serious review as the U.S. government considers implementing legislation to weigh in on one side or the other of this issue.
The parties that have concerns in the Network Neutrality debate vary but they can generally be divided into two constituents consumer and corporate interests. Internet service providers (ISP) are one group of the corporate stakeholders in the hot seat. One ISP, Comcast has been accused of restricting peer-to-peer traffic. When first accused on November 1, 2007, Comcast denied the accusations but later after being publicly outed, it admitted and tried to justify there actions. They were found to be degrading peer-to-peer Internet traffic on their network which violates the FCC 2005 Internet policy statement which states that consumer are entitled to all Internet access. Many articles were written concerning Comcast’s actions which can be found with a quick Internet search, but it has come to a resolution. On August 1, 2008, the FCC ruled against Comcast and provided the following conclusion in a press release:
The Commission also concluded that the anticompetitive harms caused by Comcast’s conduct have been compounded by the company’s unacceptable failure to disclose its practices to consumers. Because Comcast did not provide its customers with notice of the fact that it interfered with customers’ use of peer-to-peer applications, customers had no way of knowing when Comcast was interfering with their connections. As a result, the Commission found that many consumers experiencing difficulty using only certain applications would not place blame on Comcast, where it belonged, but rather on the applications themselves, thus further disadvantaging those applications in the competitive marketplace. (FCC.gov, Aug 1, 2008)
Peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing applications can be used for distributed network file exchange between participants computers. While many ISPs assume that the files being exchanged are illegal content such as pirated television programs, movies, and music; many legitimate content providers are using this method to streamline distribution and defray bandwidth costs. For example, media company Revison3 uses P2P to distribute original video content to consumers. Many other companies such as the major television networks have also experimented with P2P network distribution for media content because of the large file size of media content. This is just one case where an Internet application service has been restricted because it was assumed that the P2P application were negative as apposed to the actions of a limited number users. There are many reasons that ISPs could justify restrictions in the name of the greater good of consumers but it is ultimately just PR spin. So, should cars be outlawed because they can transport stolen goods? This approach to network management is not logical or consumer friendly.
SF Dinner Cruise
A few photos from a spring trip.
The One Year TV Purchase
Last July, the wife and I were discussing the possibility of getting one of those shinny new flat screen televisions and then fate intervened to push us along. Our discussions were centered around replacing the main living room television. We had many questions; “What size?”, “LCD or Plasma?”, “Brand Quality?” were just a few. Money was also a big concern because I did not want to spend a small fortune because the more that you spend, the more likely that you are to have “buyers remorse.” So why this debate went continued, our bedroom television flatlined. This turned our attention to a slightly, to a less substantial purchase. This was also a bit comforting that we could make this decision on a smaller scale before deciding on a living room purchase.
Enlisting the help of the Internet, I started to research so that the broken television could be replaced without delay. Professional and amateur/antidotal reviews were scoured looking for the best answer for the situation. This would be an easy task if money was not an issue but this fact kept our decision in check. In the end, the decision was to purchase a Westinghouse model SK-32H240S. The screen was great and it contained many of the necessary features, including price. This was the end of our adventure, so we thought.
Fast forward about six months and we started having some power issues. The unit would sometimes not turn on, unless it was unplugged and then plugged back in to the wall. I called Westinghouse customer service and they were very friendly and helped me trouble shoot the issue. It was beyond a phone call, and would require a service call. They proceeded to inform me that the warranty service was facilitated through BestBuy. This was where the purchase was made so it provided some comfort that yet another party was not go get involved.
Scheduling the service appointment was another task that took awhile. I went back and forth in an attempt to get a service time but it just was not working out for my schedule right then. Along comes May and the need to burn some vacation days provides opportunity to schedule that needed service appointment. On May 26, the Best Buy service rep (John) arrived and proceeded to address the issues at hand. He was very nice and reassured me that the situation would be corrected but he needed some parts which he ordered. The parts were to arrive in about a week but an automated phone call ten days later informed me that the parts were back ordered. I waited five weeks before calling to check up on the status, this was the one year mark. After some digging I was told that the parts were to arrive on August 3.
A phone call from John the service changed that waiting stance. He apologized for the delay and expressed concern that the parts would arrive as scheduled. He then provided a return code to exchange the broken TV for a new fully functioning model. This prompted a swift trip to BestBuy to finally clear up this mess that had sat on the burner for far to long. The old Westinghouse was exchanged for the current model (SK-32H540S), which I assumed would be at least as good as the one being returned. Up back on unboxing to new device some shortcomings were detected. First it would produce static sound even with the volume completely down or muted. Then there was the blue light, a piercing blue light that indicated power, because the screen was insufficient. The first television had this light as well but it cold be shut off, no such luck this time. One other item that made the unit different was the menus that appeared to be drawn with crayons. This comment may seem to be trivial but user interface is an important feature in my book. This ones going back to the store. The response from the store was positive I just needed to decide on a new model.
The BestBuy manager suggested a few models to replace the unwanted television but some research needed to be done. It was almost back to square one a year later. After searching I found a Sony model (KDL-32L4000) that seem to fit the bill. I was further amused to read virtually the same story as mine in a personal review of the Sony model on a forum. I have spent a week with this so far and have very few minor criticisms. But what most impresses myself is that the purchased stated a year ago seems now to be completed.
Wordpress App
This site is built on WordPress blog software, not because I could not build this site myself because I have created many other websites. But why should I spend the energy when I have so many other responsibilities. Using the software has proven interesting as I am not accustom to working with other people code for anything other than learning and adapting to my own will. But it has been an adventure implementing a software of another’s design. I have found excitement with the amount of plugins that offer great extensibility to my new website.
One of these was a plugin that offered an iPhone interface for the WordPress administration functions. While I thought this might be useful and it was well produced, it seemed a bit limiting. When the Apple App Store opened I was forlorn to discover that a TypePad application is available for the iPhone. Well that was just turned around when I discovered that a iPhone application for WordPress is under development. And it appears to be very feature rich, see the video below and/or check out the WordPress blog.
The Blendtec Adventures
The iPhone is very useful you can manage email, calendar, photos, media, and surf the web. I must admit that it is in my hand quite a bit. (Did I mention I am a self diagnosed technology-addict? Should I seek help?) But as useful as this device may be I must admit that using the iPhone for a marketing tools is a great idea. Capitalizing on the all the press and the excitement works out out to be cheap advertising. Blendtec produces high end blenders that seem to handle just about anything. Based on the videos, I would consider getting one. (that means the marketing is working) People were astounded when that first iPhone was released that Blendtec created a video that converted the device into black powder. Well it has been 48 hours since that new iPhone 3G was released and version two of the video is now available.
The 3G iPhone blended.
This train wreck fascination that is leveraging new media is one companies way of marketing out side the box. Creative ways of leveraging new media and meeting the active consumer is something that other companies need to embrace. As television and print media fade away (yeah I said it) the companies that succeed in the future are the ones that will have established themselves in this next generation of marketing mindset. Only time will tell, who will survive.
iPhone 2.OOOOhh
For my birthday last year, my wife (a sweetheart) bought me an iPhone. While I thought that the iPhone would have third-party applications last year, around October, but instead there was just an announcement stating that Apple would allow applications sometime in the future. Then again a few months later with my hopes high, it did not happen in March like I hoped. But finally a little over twenty-four hours ago the Apple opened the App Store. Now finally, I can load third-party apps on my phone without hacking by using some warranty voiding method, not that I was not tempted a few times.
There is quite a variety (over 500) of applications at Apple’s iTunes store and I have downloaded a several already. Some are good some have questionable value. One in the later category is Saber Phone which simulates a Star Wars light saber. It did bring big smiles to the kids face and we had a few laughs but I do not see this one lasting on my phone very long. On the other end of the scale I have been playing a game and I am not by nature a gamer. What is this wast of time that has caught my interest, Super Monkey Ball. The game is played by rolling a ball that contains a monkey through mazes that become quite challenging fast. And currently I am stuck at level seven.
Besides being a fun game to play, the quality is amazing. The graphics are stunning and I find the physics of using the phones motion sensors to control by tilting and shifting the game very entertaining. The one need that the game does not fill that I wanted is a game that I could play when I am waiting (e.g. doctor, dmv). But a grown man swerving around with a candy colored screen is a bit more than I think most of the public could handle. But there is always solitaire or Bejeweled to fill that void.