YouTube And TiVo - More Than Just A Purrrfect Combo

August 6th, 2008 Davis

I knew it was coming, but I finally received my 9.4 software update. The update includes a couple of UI improvements, but TiVo’s support for YouTube is what I’ve been drooling over.

The way it’s currently set up, you need to hit a lot of buttons to get at your favorite content, but thankfully, TiVo has said that that they are working on a way to sync it with your personal YouTube account.

One of the complaints that I often read about YouTube is that it’s just a bunch a cat videos. While it is true that the feline community has found their special crazy place on the site, I feel that this statement does an injustice to all of the hard working innovative filmmakers who are pushing the boundaries of the web. Don’t get me wrong there is a ton of junk on YouTube, but there are also some really talented people who are redefining the relationship between an artist and their audience.

The beauty of YouTube is that it provides a platform where all kinds of niche communities can develop. Cat videos may not be important to you, but to some people they are more compelling than anything on Prime time TV. The challenge is matching the niche demand with the niche producers.

When I was growing up, I only had access to three TV channels. Cable eventually gave me 100 channels to choose from, but even then there was nothing ever on. When TiVo came out it completely changed how I thought about “channels” and shifted the equation from 100 programs to choose from to 10’s of thousands. Now, by adding YouTube support, TiVo is once again exponentially increasing my access to content. Filtering through the noise will be a challenge, but this partnership will help personalize your television to an even greater level.

To celebrate TiVo’s support of YouTube, I’ve put together a list of 20 of my favorite web video creators. You won’t find many cat videos, but you will get a glimpse of the future of the entertainment industry.

1.) You Suck At Photoshop - The series is dark and twisted, but is very very funny. You get the feeling that sometimes Donnie is pulling his “hypothetical” examples from real life experiences, but his obsession only adds to the comedy. Even if you don’t like photoshop, this is worth watching.

2.) PurePwnage - I discovered PurePwnage about two years ago and was instantly hooked. The show follows a pro-gamer around and films him embarrassing himself and others. While it’s shot in an amateur documentary style, it’s clear that Kyle has a ton of talent. The series is cleverly edited and offers a humorous glimpse at the video game sub-culture.

3.) Pretend We Don’t Exist - Most of the videos on YouTube are filmed for the web, they are quick and funny, but they also tend to be unpolished and gimmicky. The videos that PWDE creates are a breath of fresh air compared to the rest of YouTube. Their clips tend to be much longer and are focused on deep and dark subjects. The humor is much more subtle and is driven by the characters in their films. The filming and editing looks amazing and represents cinematography at it’s finest. There are more popular artists on YouTube, but more than any of the other videos, PWDE’s content deserves to be seen on a big screen television.

4.) ./ Shutdown - If you’ve ever wondered what really goes on in your IT department, ./ Shutdown is the series for you. They celebrate all things geeky and offer an entertaining and humorous look at anything nerd related. Their videos can go from quirky to awkward, to just plain mind boggling, all in a single episode. I don’t know how their videos would do with a mass market TV audience, but I’m not surprise that they’ve built a following online.

5.) Mondo Mini-Shows - Not everyone will appreciate the humor in Mondo Media’s videos, but if you like the itchy and scratchy episodes from the Simpsons, you’ll love these animations. By combining the right amount of cuteness with hair raising violence, they’ve stumbled onto a winning formula for the web.

6. ) Sub Pop - Sub Pop is the only channel on my list that I would consider to be professional content. Most record labels have been slow to evolve to the new media landscape, but Sub Pop hasn’t been afraid to adapt. During the 90’s, they discovered many of the top grunge bands and continue to introduce amazing new artists today. Their videos are better than anything you’ll find on MTV, even if the bands aren’t as popular (yet.)

7.) Kevin Nalts - Love him or hate him, there is no denying that Nalts really is a viral video genius. Between his job and his family, I don’t know how he finds time to create his videos, but his gems are some of the funniest clips on the web. The man knows no shame and isn’t afraid to exploit helpless kittens to get the fame that he deserves.

8.) Gradual Report - When Ze Frank gave up internet video it left a big void on the web, luckily other talented comedians have step forward to help keep you entertained. Daniel Grozdich’s style reminds me a lot of Ze, but his comedy tends to be edgier and more dangerous. His rantings borderline on craziness and brilliance, but it’s a tension that provides a ton of entertainment.

9.) Tom Green - Ten years ago, TV was sorted into neat and tidy channels, but today it’s a fragmented mess. When you tell Netflix what movies you want to see, does it really matter what studio made it? Likewise, who cares what network a show is on, if you are just going to TiVo it? Tom Green was one of the first celebrities to recognize this trend and instead of bitching and moaning about it, he started his own TV channel and now has a successful online talk show that he broadcasts on TomGreen.com His channel isn’t carried on any of the cable networks, but thanks to the magic of the internet, fans can still tune into his bizarre and zany antics.

10.) Charbax - Whenever there is a tech boondoggle in Las Vegas, the press will trip over themselves to cover it, but if the event is held in Europe, you’re lucky to find any coverage. Fortunately, Charbax covers many of these European tech events and provides a unique view into the consumer electronic industry. His questions are focused with laser precision and produce very stimulating discussions on current digital trends. His reporting goes way beyond the sound bites and consistently brings new and relevant information to his audience.

11.) Rabbit Bites - You may have never heard of them, but Buns and Chou are two of the most famous rabbits on the internet. By combining sharp humor with rabbit commentary, they’ve managed to win the hearts of their fans. Their show is a cross between Access Hollywood and Animal planet. They typically skewer pop culture from the rabbit perspective. As their popularity has grown, they’ve been able to use their fame to bring several big name guests on the show.

12.) Videoholic - Videoholic was a betamax blogger, even before blogging existed. Over the years he’s met with other Beta fans, traveled to CES and has even written for Betamax newsgroups. During that time he’s also managed to collect a treasure trove of tapes that literally cover walls and walls of his home. Whether it’s Ray Bradbury selling out to the prune industry or old “cell” phone ads that should not be forgotten, you never quite now what will be coming next. By sharing his life long passion with the larger community, Videoholic is helping to keep history alive.

13.) Noodle Scar - Bonnie hasn’t updated her site in six months, but I’m still hanging onto hope that Noodle Scar will come back. Once a day, she would create a quick 30 second clip filled with random awesomeness. The fast tempo format always left me wanting more. If you haven’t already seen her clips, her archives are definitely worth exploring.

14.) Jeremy Cathey - Jeremy is only 17 years old, but he’s already learned a lot about how to make great films. He doesn’t have access to a big budget, but his clips still look professional. One of the great things about YouTube is that it gives filmmakers like Jeremy, the opportunity to experiment and try new things, without the pressure of needing instant success. As he continues to perfect his art, I have no doubt that he’ll end up making films for even larger audiences.

15.) Improv Everywhere - Most of the practical joke shows on TV tend to make their victims look really stupid, but Improv Everywhere adds a bit of class to the practical joke genre. Through the power of the internet, they assemble random people together, in order to stage elaborate public demonstrations. The events are designed to be so ridiculous that people can’t help but be confused by what’s happening. Just watching the pranks unfold can be fun, but watching the reactions make it priceless. I’m hoping that they’ll come to San Francisco, so that I can take part in the fun.

16.) Vancouver Film School - Even before the internet, I was always a fan of college films. They tend to take risks that big budgets won’t and I like the roughness that they bring to their films. The Vancouver Film School consistently puts out some pretty impressive clips. Their videos do contain an occasional miss, but they’re not infected with the commercialism that is embedded in today’s professional content.

17.) Muggle Sam - Normally, I’m not the sentimental type, but you’d have to have a heart of stone to not be touched by Sophia and Isabella. They are two young girls who are growing up on YouTube. Every episode reminds me of how great it was to be a child. Each day you learn something new about the world. What really makes the series stand out is the quality of it’s editing. Muggles Sam has a special talent for taking small clips and using them to tell a bigger story.

18.) The Gigaom Show - Most of the interviews that I see on TV are usually by a reporter who really doesn’t know all that much about the person they’re talking to. The result is a quick 30 second clip of PR spin. When it comes to the Giga Om show, you can expect a much deeper level of analysis. Because Om Malick and Joyce Kim follow the tech industry so closely, they know the right questions to ask their guests. The show is currently on hiatus for the summer, but I’m looking forward to seeing more episodes in the future.

19.) Reel Geezers - Who needs professional movie critics when you can watch Marcia and Lorenzo share their take on the latest Blockbuster films? This Octogenarian Duo has been broadcasting their own movies reviews for a little less than a year and have already built a respectable following. I don’t always agree with their take on the movies, but, but I still enjoy hearing them.

20.) aniBOOM - aniBOOM helps cartoon and animation creators monetize their content. They use YouTube to showcase some of their best stuff. As a big fan of cartoons for grownups, this subscription is one of my favorites.

My tastes can be a little eclectic, but hopefully you’ll be able to find at least one or two new shows that are of interest. If you know of any good web series that I left out or if you happen to make your own web videos, feel free to leave a link in the comments.

Posted in TV, Media, VOD, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo, Netflix | 4 Comments »

TiVo Kills In 3D

May 1st, 2008 Davis

Posted in VOD, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | No Comments »

Inmate Sues Over No HD TiVos

April 11th, 2008 Davis

On the same day that TiVo was celebrating another legal win over Dish, they also learned of new lawsuit against them. Jonathan Riches has sued TiVo and some mysterious entity know as “HDTV” over the lack of HD TiVo in his jail cell. TiVo may end up needing to take Dish all the way to the Supreme Court to win their feud, but don’t bet on Riches suit getting quite as far. He’s already sued TiVo once before and had the case quickly dismissed. In fact over the last year, Riches has seen over 1,000 of his bogus lawsuits thrown out of court. I can understand how the losing access to TiVo’s sweet HDTV goodness might be uncomfortable, but I’m not convinced that it rises to the level of unconstitutionality.

What do you think is life without TiVo cruel and unusual punishment? (for dramatic effect)

Posted in TV, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | 2 Comments »

The Moon Rises On TiVo Japan

April 1st, 2008 Davis

As someone who lives in the United States, it’s easy to forget that TiVo isn’t available everywhere. Over the last few years, we’ve seen TiVo support expanded to Canada, Mexico, China and pretty soon Australia, but TiVo’s international expansion hasn’t come without its fair share of head fakes.

Early on in their history, TiVo tried to bring the TiVolution to Britain, but the initiative proved too costly and they later withdrew support to focus on North America. For a long time, I thought that TiVo would stick exclusively to the US market, but about three years ago, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun announced that TiVo was trying to form a Japanese partnership and had plans to launch a version of TiVo in Japan, beginning in early 2007.

2007 came and went and while TiVo has achieved significant progress on their international expansion, they never mentioned the TiVo Japan partnership again. After failing to launch the service in 07′, I had given up all hope of seeing TiVo in Japan, but after a long slumber, it appears that the sun the moon has once again risen on the TiVo Japan website.

Instead of announcing new plans for a Japanese service though, the website has apparently been hacked by a group who is upset about an upcoming advertising program by TiVo. If you go to the TiVo.jp website, they’ve posted a warning about plans by TiVo to disable fast forwarding capabilities on their sponsors’ commercials. In a statement condemning the program, the hackers have vowed to retain control over the site until TiVo agrees to a forthcoming list of their demands.

“We at the Japanese branch of the Television Internet Video Organization (TIVO.jp) believe that fast forwarding through bad content is a fundamental right that every human being should have access to. It shouldn’t matter whether you live in Alviso, California or Yamanashi Japan, we dream of a world where ad skipping is available to everyone.

With TiVo silently plotting to take away our fast forwarding capabilities, we felt that we had no choice, but to strike back by taking control over the TiVo Japan website. Our hope is that TiVo will reconsider their anti-ad skipping stance and will agree to reinstate our ability to blow past bad commercials.”

While I applaud TiVo for trying to come up with an innovative way to reward their shareholders, I can’t help but wonder how popular fast forward blocking will be with TiVo’s customers. It’s likely that this may be an April Fool’s joke by TiVo and that they may be having some fun with their own website, but somehow I doubt that they would Goatse their customers with a faux protest. The site has an RSS feed and I’ll be tuning in for more announcements. I don’t think that we’re any closer to seeing TiVo DVRs in Japan, but at least the website has new content.

Posted in Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | 2 Comments »

From The Dawn Of Time To The Discovery Of TiVo

February 25th, 2008 Davis

TiVo Postcard by ~ChibiMagatsu on deviantART

I found this TiVo postcard on Deviant Art and thought that it was interesting. I think that it was originally part of an official marketing campaign, but it’s possible that it may have been created by the TiVo army. My favorite part is where they quote Steve Young as saying that TiVo is the greatest thing since wheat.

Posted in Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | No Comments »

The Pros and Cons Of Media Center Vista

January 31st, 2008 Davis

Over the past few months, I’ve finally started to get a feel for Media Center Vista and while I haven’t tried out every feature in the program, I have played around with it long enough to have some initial thoughts. Before I tried the software, I had low expectations, but after actually using the program, I’ve been really impressed with what the Media Center team has put together.

Media Center Vista allows you to perform some pretty advanced tasks without having to be a computer geek in order to figure out how to use it. I initially had some reservations about the user interface, but it only took about a week, before I found it growing on me. There are still improvements that Microsoft needs to make, but they’ve made a giant leap forward, compared to the original XP version.

Pros

-Media Center Vista is wicked fast at finding new programs. In the XP version, the software was painfully slow at trying to search for shows. As soon as I would start typing in the name of a show, XP would freak out from trying to sort through so much information. In Vista, the program still starts searching immediately, but the indexing has been turbocharged. Instead of having to wait for the menu, the results will appear as fast as you can type. This faster indexing shows up in a number of areas. When you are browsing, you can hit page down and scroll through programs as fast as you can read them. If you want to rearrange the priority of your recordings, you can make changes and move onto other areas of the program without having to wait forever while the system checks for conflicts.

-The interface looks fantastic. Microsoft has done a good job of creating a clean and intuitive DVR experience. The program is easy to navigate and has lots of extra features. On the surface the design appears relatively simple, but you can tell that Microsoft has paid a lot of attention to the little details. Whether it’s being able to double click on the picture in picture window, in order to bring up the full screen or being able to see the DVD art for upcoming movies, there are a lot of subtle features that make for a more enjoyable media experience.

-Vista comes with 30 second skip enabled. TiVo fans know that you can hack your remote to add this feature, but the big studios were able to scare TiVo into disabling it for the masses. In the past, I’ve never really used the 30 second skip feature because it meant giving up the skip to the end button on my remote. After spending some time with it on Media Center, I’ve been really surprised at how much I’m enjoying it. Hitting a button six times is a lot easier than trying to guess when the program is about to start again.

-There is minimal interference between you and your recordings. One of my biggest frustrations with the generic DVR was that it required too many unnecessary steps, before I could interact with my content. It felt like I had to hit ten buttons before I could schedule a movie, delete a recording or even watch a show. With Vista Media Center, it’s an entirely different story. The entire experience is built around the content that you are interacting with. You can’t do everything from all levels of the software, but each step is intuitively linked to the task that you are focused on. If you are watching a TV show, then by right clicking you can delete the program or burn it to DVD. If you are playing music it’s one click to pause, skip, repeat, shuffle . . . .

-You can watch TV while surfing the web. Media Center is really designed for the living room, but I’m primarily using it in a desktop setting. I didn’t think that I’d watch a lot of TV at my desk, but I’ve found it to be the perfect compliment to streaming Netflix and YouTube. This isn’t ideal for shows with intense action and complex story lines, but its perfect for tuning into the news when you see a story break online or for listening to late night talk shows, while you’re multitasking on the web. This feature won’t benefit you, if you plan on using Media Center on your TV, but it’s a good reason to add on a TV tuner, the next time you upgrade your PC.

-You can use the XBox360 as an extender. I’ve read a lot about the Xbox extenders, but I had never actually seen one in action. Connecting my Xbox to Media Center took an extra registration step, but it was well worth the time to get it set up. When I first heard about Microsoft’s extender strategy, I was skeptical that it would stream videos without problems or program lock ups. While I didn’t test the connection using WiFi, my experience using the Xbox was almost identical to having the PC directly connected to the TV. No lag, no stuttering, just instant access to my content on my big screen tv.

-You can watch TV while using the menus. TiVo uses picture in picture technology on their Comcast download, but you won’t find it on their stand alone DVRs. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed this until I started using Vista as a DVR. Whether it’s a live show or a recording, Vista will minimize whatever program that’s on, when you want to dig deeper into the menu settings. This isn’t good if you’ve accidentally stumbled onto a football game and are desperately trying to avoid the score, but it is nice for when you’re not exactly sure what you want to watch.

-It will help you find programs that are on right now. Vista Media Center allows you to search for programs in a number of ways, but its their support for upcoming television, that impressed me the most. When it comes to searching for things like TV series, kid shows, etc., it allows you to browse alphabetically or by date. They’ve also built a separate section for movies and for sports where they’ve packed in some extra bonus content. In the TV and movies section, they offer plugins for various movie download services and in the sports section Vista will let you check the box scores or add fantasy players to track.

-You can skip automatically skip commercials. DVRs make it easy to skip commercials, but Vista Media Center takes things one step further by supporting plugins, that can edit out those pesky little ads entirely. It’s not easy to set up and it’s not something that is enabled by default, but it’s still a pretty sweet feature to add.

-You can placeshift your TV. The Slingbox is great if you have a cable DVR or a TiVo, but with Media Center you can download a free plugin that will let you watch your content wherever you can connect to the net. I haven’t actually used the program yet, but it’s still a great feature to have access to.

-You can burn DVDs. Normally, I’m pretty good about watching all of the shows that I record, but when it comes to boxing, I just don’t have time to see every fighter. It’s my favorite sport, but since I record every fight (even the ones on the Spanish channels), there isn’t enough time/hard drive space, to get caught up. Since I’ll never really know which fighters will end up making it big, I’ve decided to use my Media Center to archive all of the fights. By saving them to DVD, I should be able to go back and watch the fights that mattered.

-It supports external storage. Media Center gives you a lot of control over how you want to set up your storage. Since I’m using it as a secondary DVR, I’ve set it up to record a maximum of 100GB on my internal drive. If I need more, I can add an external drive or increase my internal hard drive allocation.

Cons

-You shouldn’t have to reboot your TV. One of the things that I love about my TiVo is that it just works. You don’t have to be a tech geek to figure it out, you plug it into your TV and it records everything. In the entire time that I’ve been a TiVo customer, I can think of very few occasions where TiVo failed to record my programing. When it comes to Media Center, it’s important to remember that it’s a PC first and a DVR second. Over the last few months, I’ve found the program to be mostly reliable, but it hasn’t been smooth sailing either. Whether it’s been dealing with poor DRM design, troubleshooting a bug that refused to let me download the guide data or having my computer crash while recording television, there have been several times where I’ve missed recordings, because of PC related problems. While I can’t blame Microsoft for all of my problems, it’s still frustrating to miss a show because of technical difficulties.

-Internet video support is weak. Media Center includes support for services like Vongo and Showtime on Demand, but it involves registering and downloading a separate program before you can get it working. As a Netflix subscriber, I was looking forward to being able to use Watch Now inside of Media Center, but Microsoft has left it up to the fans to build support for this. Microsoft includes some MSN internet video content, but they make you watch pre-roll ads before knowing whether or not it’s something that you are interested in. The Xbox may unofficially support DivX, but you can’t access it inside of media center. If you prefer to use a media extender instead, it will support your XviD files, but it’s set up to block your DivX content.

-It won’t record radio. XM may have just settled a lawsuit over their radio DVR, but recording radio shouldn’t be any different than television content. Media Center will let you listen to OTA radio, but it doesn’t let you record any of the programs.

-Fast forward is a little too powerful. It may be, that I’m just used to TiVo, but Vista’s fast forward speeds are hard to adjust to. They’ve got slow, almost fast and then it jumps to hyper speed. I can’t tell whether or not they are using a five second skip back, but when I hit play, I’m usually way past the start of the program. If you stick to the 30 second skip it’s not a problem, but it’d be nice if there was some kind of a way to adjust the timing on this.

-You can’t skip to the middle of a program. One of the things that I like about downloaded video is being able to immediately jump to the middle or the end of a program. Since this is a key feature in Window’s media player, I was surprised to see this missing from Media Center. There is also no way to jump 15 minutes ahead. If you happen to fall asleep during the middle of a program, you’re stuck with fast forwarding in order to get back to where you were at.

-You can’t rate your television. As television continues to involve, it’s becoming increasingly personal. Media Center does a good job of recording TV, but it doesn’t do a very good job of getting to know you. You can sort movies by the highest rated, but its using someone else’s criteria. Because you can’t tell Media Center what you do and don’t like, there are no suggested recordings or personalization.

-It doesn’t support auto-recording of wishlists. I’m a big basketball fan, but I’m really only interested in seeing the Laker games. Media Center will let me search for the next time that they are playing, but it won’t automatically record the game. It would be nice to be able to use media center to record programs that are customized to my interests.
Al pointed out in the comments that you can actually uses wishlists, you just need to set it up from the add recording field. Thanks for the help Al. This one definitely should go in the pro category.

-Vista’s DRM doesn’t play nice with HD. I’m still fuming over this one. I knew that recording HDTV on Vista would be a hassle, so I stuck with standard tuners when I customized my computer. After upgrading to an HD monitor, Vista disabled my Netflix Watch Now and put Media Center into lock down. If Apple’s DRM wasn’t just as bad, I would be thinking differently after this experience.

-It takes forever to burn a DVD. I was really jazzed up over being able to archive shows onto DVD, but the sluggishness of the DVD burning capabilities has me rethinking this game plan. It took me 2 and a half hours to burn a one hour program to DVD. It’d be one thing if I was using lousy hardware, but it takes less then 4 minutes for me to burn a 2 hour DivX film. It’s nice to be able to save your TV, but it should never take more time to burn the disc, than it does to watch it.

-Good for early adopters, complicated for everyone else. Vista Media Center offers a lot of unique features, but it takes too much tweaking to set these up. Placeshifting and auto commercial skipping are available, but it’s up the consumer to find and install these programs. Even if you know what you are doing, the setup can still be complicated. Instead of making consumers seek out these programs, Microsoft should be including them as part of the package. It wouldn’t be popular with the media companies, but it’d win the company a lot more fans.

-The recording quality is terrible. It’s probably not fair to compare a cablecard connected TiVo with an analog cable media center set up, but the TiVO SD recordings on my 60″ screen, look way better than the Media Center recordings on my 22″ monitor. This probably has less to do with Media Center and more to do with the tuners that I’m using, but it still takes away from the user experience. Unless you want to spend the big bucks on a cablecard media center, you may end up having to deal with poor resolutions.

-There’s no turning back once you delete - As careful as I am, sometimes my DVR instincts go on auto-pilot and I’ll accidentally delete a show before watching it. With TiVo I can recover that program, but in Media Center it is gone forever. The file isn’t even in the Recycle bin. Media Center will always ask you to confirm before deleting, but this also creates one more button to push when you are done with the shows that you have watched.

So there you have it, the good, the bad and Media Center Vista. There are some rough spots around the edges, but it really is a fantastic program. I’m hoping that we’ll see better support for HDTV and for online video as the program continues to evolve.

Posted in TV, Media, DivX, Slingbox, DRM, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, Microsoft, TiVo | 7 Comments »

Forget Radio Shark, The Stream Ripping Piranhas Were What The RIAA Should Have Been Worried About

December 18th, 2007 Davis

The RIAA may have given up on trying to outlaw DVRs, but that hasn’t stopped them from trying to interfere with your legal right to record content and when it comes to recording radio, they’ve drawn a line in the sand. Over the past few years, we’ve seen a number of innovative radio DVR gadgets hit the market, only to be squashed by the goons at the RIAA squad. What’s made the RIAA’s strategy even more boneheaded than usual, has been their insistence on trying to keep this technology out of the hands of their paying customers.

Whether its their ridiculous lawsuit against XM Satellite radio or Creative’s decision to remove FM recording from their MP3 products, there are plenty of examples where the RIAA has used heavy handed tactics to try and stifle innovation.

Yet, no matter how hard they try, they can’t put this genii back into the bottle and by taking such a strong stance against legitimate companies, they’ve driven DVR radio underground, where they’ve now lost all control over it.

The RIAA may have been worried about RadioShark, but it was the radio piranhas that were the real threat and while they were busy suing their partners, the open source movement has been filling the stream ripping wake, that corporations are now too afraid to touch.

Stream ripping software isn’t new, but the functionality has been relatively limited and the interface hasn’t been ready for the average user. Screamer Radio is an excellent open source solution for DVR radio, but it lacks the aesthetic appeal and scheduling features, that make traditional DVRs so easy to use.

Luckily, the open source community has been hard at work and what Screamer Radio leaves out, Raima Radio is now bringing to the table. Raima Radio is a powerful freeware program that fuses features like wishlists, program scheduling, and video support with the traditional features of most stream ripping programs.

This combination turns a tremendous amount of power over to the consumer and will certainly have the RIAA taking extra heartburn medication (when they find out about it ) If they didn’t like XM’s limited subscriber base, having the ability to record satellite radio, then they will hate this program. It gives anyone with a computer and an internet connection, the ability to time shift radio to an mp3 player.

Raima supports a large number of internet radio stations and includes links to web pages, where you can find even more mainstream programs. If you are midway through a program, you can hit record and it caches the data, so that you can get all of the program. For years I’ve wanted to tune into Kevin and Bean’s morning show on KROQ, but since I live in San Francisco, I haven’t had easy access to the program. Now I can use Raima’s program to start recording, before I even wake up. By bridging the gap between the internet and the mp3, Raima allows you to follow radio that would normally be out of geographic reach.

Even more powerful then the scheduling capabilities, is the ability for Raima to monitor and record specific songs or artists that you are interested in. Instead of illegally downloading songs from the P2P networks, Raima allows you to create wishlists and will scan for those songs on any station that you tune into. The number of streams that you can simultaneously record is only limited by your bandwidth. This allows you to set up filters, record 10 different stations overnight and in the morning you’ll have a hefty mp3 collection.

This is the functionality that has the RIAA so terrified. If consumers are able to easily record the songs that they hear off the radio, it reduces their need to buy the hit singles. As someone who prefers albums over singles, I think that this is the wrong way to look at it, but I can still understand why they would see this as a threat to their business model. If you get me hooked on a few of your best songs, I’m going to buy your albums, go to your concerts and tell my friends about you, but if you are a casual music listener, this software will enable you to avoid ever having to purchase music again.

While the radio capabilities are Raima’s strongest suit, they’ve also thrown in support for recording streaming video. There isn’t a large selection of channels and the quality is terrible, but its a nice bonus over some of the other stream ripping programs. I would like to see them add support for recording internet video into XviD, but portability is more important for music, than it is for video.

The biggest drawback to Raima’s software is that the quality of the sound files isn’t always the best. The songs usually start recording ten seconds early and cut off before they finish. Unlike TiVo, there is no way to tell the system to start recording earlier or later to account for the lag. The mp3 streams also tend to include commentary from the DJs and sponsors. This isn’t a big deal if you’re trying to listen to a half an hour of talk radio, but it can be annoying, if you are only focused on the music. The quality of the mp3’s is also dependent on your internet connection. If you are trying to record a stream from Japan, while watching YouTube, running Bit Torrent, and playing online poker, then expect stuttering and interference to show up in your recordings. If you have a dedicated connection to a local radio station, then you should be fine.

While these deficiencies aren’t a major drawback, they still help to differentiate time shifted radio from buying the actual music. As great as Raima Radio is, it still can’t replicate the selection or quality that you can get from visiting Amoeba or buying .mp3’s online.

Another drawback to the software is that you can’t tell if a station is broadcasting until you try to tune into it. Because Raima includes a lot of dead streams, it means that you have to spend a lot of time trying to load dead air.

Overall, Raima Radio is a great freeware program and one that is pushing the envelope for time shifted radio. While there is plenty of room for improvement, its one of the better stream ripping programs out there. Universal may be relishing the royalties that they extracted from XM, but in the end, they paid a fair steeper price by trying to squash innovation.

Posted in Music, Technology, Media, DRM, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | 5 Comments »

Not Every Love Song Is Romantic

December 10th, 2007 Davis

Posted in VOD, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | 4 Comments »

Comcast Raises Fees On Non-Comcast DVR Owners

November 12th, 2007 Davis

Over the years, I’ve had a love/hate relationship with Comcast. On one hand, I love having access to high speed internet and high definition cable television, but I also resent their monopolization over my entertainment choices. Because they’ve worked out sweetheart deals with cities in the Bay Area, I have little choice, but to use their services. If I owned my own home, I could consider satellite, but as a renter, I’ve found very few landlords, who are willing to approve a dish.

I probably should have been upset about their latest fee increase, when the Toeman warned me about it, but it didn’t hit home until I got my latest Comcast bill and saw a 6.5% increase on the price of my television. This follows a 6% increase last year and a 10% increase the year before. What makes this fee increase even more frustrating, is that I wouldn’t have to pay it, if I would just break down and become a Comcast DVR subscriber.

It’s been no secret that Comcast has objected to the cable card mandate, but what most people don’t understand, is how big of a threat, the stand alone DVR is to Comcast. What the public thinks is a $5 surcharge, is really a difference of $56 per month for my own situation. Over the years, Comcast has fueled their corporate profits by upgrading a massive analog cable base to their digital platform and they’ve done that by bundling these digital services with DVR and HDTV features.

If you actually compare the basic analog tv lineup to the basic digital tier, there are few differences between them. When I asked a Comcast rep which new channels I would get as a digital subscriber, he cited the Hallmark channel, CSPAN2 and ATV as reasons to upgrade. Not exactly a very compelling lineup.

Because Comcast knows that people won’t upgrade for CSPAN2 alone, they force their customers to upgrade, if they want any advanced services. This means that the real cost of HDTV and DVR services, has been buried in the forced digital upcharge that subscribers pay.

In the Bay Area, Comcast currently requires you to subscribe to their Digital Preferred Plus package, before they’ll rent you a DVR. The problem with this package is that it has an ongoing rate of $98.45, plus an additional $11.95 for the DVR. This comes to $110.40 per month or over $1,300 per year. Now in all fairness, this package also includes HBO and Starz, but if you don’t care about these channels, Comcast still won’t rent you the DVR unless you pay for them.

Now compare this to the $54.29 that I was paying as an analog sub. As a lifetime TiVo owner, my only additional monthly cost is the $1.95 for both cablecards, which means that I’m saving $650 per year, by not being suckered into Comcast’s digital packages. Even when you consider that I paid $800 for a series 3 TiVo, plus $300 for the lifetime transfer and another $300 to upgrade to a massive hard drive, I still come out ahead, after a little more than two years of service.

If you are a stand alone user, chances are, you are already taking advantage of the analog loophole. Because Comcast has to provide cablecards, it lets you bypass the bogus $9.99 HDTV “converter” charge. If you are a non HD standalone user, then you probably prefer the basic package anyway, because it means that you don’t have to mess around with the annoying IR blasters.

By raising prices on their analog subs, Comcast is effectively adding a non-DVR tax for people who have chosen to go outside of their system. By increasing the price on the basic television, but not digital subs, they are effectively penalizing their competition.

If Comcast wants to raise rates, they should have to do so evenly. Instead of forcing consumers to buy channels they don’t want, they should instead, be offering a la carte DVR services, that don’t require the digital subscription. I can understand why they would want to encourage people to upgrade, but they shouldn’t be allowed be allowed to abuse their monopoly, in order to appear cheaper then their competition.

Posted in Media, TV, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, TiVo | 2 Comments »

Circus Circus Clowns Around With Their Hotel TV

October 22nd, 2007 Davis

I don’t take a lot of vacations, but every now and then I like to get out town, in order to do a little bit of gambling Every time I go to Vegas, Reno or Tahoe, I try to stay at a different casino, so I never really know what to expect. Some of the hotels that I’ve stayed at have been great and some have been terrible, but Circus Circus is the only one, that has lost my business entirely.

Normally, I’d be bothered by a dirty room or poor customer service, but in this case, it was a big fat sticker, that cautioned their guests about hooking up your outside equipment, to their television sets. Five years ago, I wouldn’t have cared about something like this, but with the explosion in the number of laptop to TV solutions, this has become an important issue for consumers to think about. What good does it do you, to be able to take your PC on the go, if hotels end up freezing you out, by neutering their TV sets?

I know that hotel PPV is a huge business, but I would think that tech savvy consumers would be a juicy demographic, that the casinos would be after. In the past, the hotels haven’t had to compete against outside video sources, but as technology has gotten better, we’ve seen new possibilities emerge. Instead of leaving your TV at home, you can placeshift it with Sling or Orb. With the proliferation of portable DVD players, it’s easy to take movies on the go. Whether it’s the newly announced Sansa TakeTV or the upcoming SlingCatcher, we are seeing an increase in the number of solutions for getting digital video to the television, on an almost daily basis.

I’ve never thought about checking to see if a hotel offers open access for their TVs, but in the future, it will be something that I make sure to ask about. I understand that the casinos would rather have me gambling, then watching TV, but being able to placeshift local sports, makes betting on them all that much more exciting.

In my dream world, casinos would charge $20 more per night and I’d get unlimited broadband, along with a TiVo that can record content during my stay, but I’m not holding my breath on this one. Right now, this is only an issue for early adopters, but as PC to TV technology goes mainstream, it will be something that more people will want to think about.

Some hotels may try to lock people into their proprietary systems, but in the future, I’m going to insist on free wifi and open television, even if it means that I’m staying at motels, instead of clowning around with Circus Circus.

Posted in TV, Technology, VOD, Slingbox, Disclosure - I own stock in co. mentioned, DRM, TiVo | No Comments »