Ogg Video was annoying because Theora (the codec that powers Ogg Video) was immature, and unstable, and getting a good encoder was not a trivial task. Theora was not the highest quality, but Firefox and Chrome used it, the two thirds of the HTML5 market. It involved using a lot of command line tools (the only GUI tool I could find was Handbrake, which dropped OGV support, and when it had it, it wasn't very complex either) which weren't always user-friendly. (Note: It seems there are a couple better tools these days, one being FireFogg, but support is still weird across the board)

Then there was MP4. Really high quality, and supported by Safari, the browser loaded by default on Macs, iPhones, iPods and iPads. MP4 gives me access to a lot of mobile screens, but it has some philosophical issues because it's a patented technology. Also, FireFox will refuse to play MP4 (it seems Chrome has recently decided to support MP4), which drags me back to OGV because that has so many desktop screens (not everyone has an iPhone or and iPad).

Now Google says "We'll fix everything! Here's WebM!" Great. Wonderful idea. But no one supports it but Google. So that's three codecs I have to encode in, and there are no full-featured encoders for WebM. ffmpeg is the best one can do without throwing down a lot of money, and even its support is weak.

Way to go Google, you made my life more annoying because I have to build special tools to support your idiosyncratic codec support. DAMN YOU!

Good resource on HTML5: Dive Into HTML5

The following is a collection of (mostly) images (and a video clip) of our walk with the dogs earlier this evening. My only disappointment was that there was less really interesting looking graffiti on the train cars than usual.

Read the rest of this post »

Coordinates N39deg 9.9314' W77deg 35.7941', 6 satellites, accuracy 17.86 meters. Blue Mountain Rest Plaza.
----------------------------------------------------
Ivan Kowalenko
w: http://ivankowalenko.com
e: ivan.kowalenko@gmail.com
p: 612-670-1142
p: 856-270-6049

Looks like@Tmobile_USA's GSM 2G data network is offline, at least in Glassboro, NJ. I'd say that BIS was down, except WiFi data works. UMA, however, does not. So I can use SMS, e-mail, Internet, and make phone calls, but I cannot use MMS. Quite annoying. 

GPRS/EDGE Diagnostics:

Starting Time Stamp: May 18, 2010 01:30 PM
Ending Time Stamp: May 18, 2010 01:31 PM
PIN: [REDACTED]
MSISDN: 1 [REDACTED]
Device Type: BlackBerry 8900
Application Version: v4.6.1.231
Platform Version: 4.2.0.108
Service Books: BrowserConfig,WPTCP,WAPPushConfig,WAP,BrowserConfig,WPTCP,BrowserConfig,BrowserConfig,WPTCP,BrowserConfig,BrowserConfig,BBIMConfig,LbsConfig,BrowserConfig,BBIM,IPPP,BrowserConfig,BBIMConfig,BBIM,OTASL,BBIM,YHO,PROVISIONING,CMIME,CICAL,CMIME,CICAL,CMIME,CICAL,CMIME,CICAL,RIM_IM,KEYNEGO,CICAL,MMS
Free File Space: 76243322 bytes
Radio Data Activation: No
Signal Level: Unknown
Radio Access: Unknown
Network: Unknown
IP Address: Unknown
ICMP Ping Echo: No
BlackBerry Registration: No
Connected to BlackBerry: No
BlackBerry PIN Email: No
Server Name: BISE05C30S13
Email Address: [REDACTED]@tmo.blackberry.net
Connection to [REDACTED]@tmo.blackberry.net : No
Server Name: BISE05C30S10
Email Address: [REDACTED]@gmail.com
Connection to [REDACTED]@gmail.com : No

Wi-Fi Diagnostics:
Current Profile: [REDACTED]
SSID: [REDACTED]
AP MAC Address: [REDACTED]
Security Type: [REDACTED]
Local IP Address: 192.168.[REDACTED]
Signal Level: -57 dBm
Connection Data Rate: 54 Mbps
Status: Network acquired

VPN
Current Profile:
Concentrator Address:
Contact: N/A
Authentication: N/A
Secure Device IP:
Status: VPN disabled.

UMA
Connection Pref.: Wi-Fi Preferred
UMA Wi-Fi Available: Successful
Connection: N/A
Error Code:
Status: The required radio connection is unavailable.

BlackBerry Infrastructure
Connecting: Successful
Authenticating router: Successful
Authenticating server: Successful

I remember when some of the first XBox 360 racing games came out, and there was a ruckus over the "micropayments" (as it was called then) required for some of the game's content (which happened to be already stored on the game's DVD, and not downloaded). There was a huge uproar, mostly because the data in question was already present on the disc and players were being asked to pay more money for data already produced on the disc, not something that was produced after the fact. Nonetheless, this lead many to wonder how "micropayments" would shape the gaming landscape: would producers intentionally hold off on content in the hopes of making players pay more for content they were intentionally withholding?

Of course, DLC (DownLoadable Content) wasn't that new. PC games had things like this for years, though typically in the form of mods (the most famous being Half-Life's Counterstrike) and maps (been around since the days of Doom), but what was new was the the presence of such a thing on consoles, and the idea that players would have to pay for what used to be free.

In the end, it seems that DLC still doesn't know where it belongs. Some games, like Fable II, Half-Life 2 and Mass Effect have reasonable DLC, where plays pay a fee for large add-ons that add more story and content to the game. While the cost tends to be between a third and half of the game's original cost, they add a substantial amount of content to the game. But there are those that have done it wrong. Halo 3 could be considered one such example. The Legendary Map Pack is 600 Microsoft Points ($7.50 USD), Mythic and Mythic II are 800 each ($10 USD), making it $27.50 for maps for online play. Maps that without, one cannot enter in certain online modes of play, and had been present in Halo 2. They don't add much to the gaming experience besides that. Whereas Mass Effect's Bring Down the Sky and Pinnacle Station are a scant 400 MSP ($5 USD) apiece, and add bredth to the plot.

So DLC has its good side and its bad side. I have discovered its worst side: Railsimulator.com's Railworks. $50 for the game, $568 for all the add-ons and DLC. More than eleven times the cost of the original game. Honestly? In a day when 99¢ iPhone apps seem to rake in all the dough, is a $618 game the smartest business decision? It seems a bit excessive to me.

Click here to download:

DLC_Gone_Wrong.xls (9 KB)

(download)

Click here to download:

DLC_Gone_Wrong.xls (9 KB)

Damn DJ Ryan got the '90s into my head this evening. So now my new plan is to build a '90s office. And I already own most of the parts. The computer shall be a Mac Classic II (hopefully, with a good smack, its hard disk will rise again) paired to a Palm Pilot. Sad thing: I already own all the parts.

This will happen before my crazy-ass plan to point at satellite at Europe and pull down Freesat.

Recently I noticed the reader would lose more power while asleep than when it was in use, which is backwards. So I e-mailed Sony support, and the Sony Support guy said my battery was dying, and linked me to a battery replacement service.

My response was that I didn't see it as necessary to replace my battery yet, so I ignored the e-mail. Then a few days later, I got *another* e-mail from Sony saying that my reduced battery life was a result of a bug in the firmware that affects a number of units, and offered me a free repair service, including free shipping both ways.

Well, I never got around to answering that e-mail, and Sony, today, mailed me a box (2nd Day Air) with bubble wrap and a 2nd Day Air return label. So basically, without asking them a single thing, Sony did a lot of work and paid a decent amount of money to provide service for a device they have discontinued and replaced several times over. And this isn't just an, "our bad. We need a few more days," kind of service, it's a "we're very sorry, we screwed up. Send us your device, we'll fix it right, and to make up for it, here's $10 towards a new book for it, on us."

Who are you, and what have you done with the Sony that is screwing me around with the PSP?
----------------------------------------------------
Ivan Kowalenko
w: http://ivankowalenko.com
e: ivan.kowalenko@gmail.com
p: 612-670-1142
p: 856-270-6049

Advantage: Nerds who spend time outside (and likely own a smart phone that has too short a battery life, like certain BlackBerries, or iPhones) can charge their devices without having to use a bulky external battery, a larger internal battery, or a secondary battery (which still needs to be charged independently) by topping things off. The internal LiIon cells would provide power when the solar cells can't (when inside, in the shade, clouds, etc).

Disadvantage: It's black. So it gets hot. Also, the cells may not be too flexible, so it would likely be stiff and/or uncomfortable.

Feasibility: Low (with current technology)

Geek Cred: High.

Final Opinion: ScottEVest/ThinkGeek, get on it!
----------------------------------------------------
Ivan Kowalenko
w: http://ivankowalenko.com
e: ivan.kowalenko@gmail.com
p: 612-670-1142
p: 856-270-6049