September 2, 2008
Oh no you didn't post that song that sticks in my head..
Seriously, don't watch this, it will stick in your head for days.
I warned you..
August 28, 2008
Mac Tablet?
Patent: Apple Details Multi-Touch Mac User Interface - Mac Rumors
Who drew these, Matt Groening?
August 20, 2008
Another bites the dust.. Satellite Television.
Though I've heard the HDTV on satellite is the bomb compared to Comcast, this article thinks the technology for satellite television is winding down.
Could Satellite TV Get Creamed by Cable? | Epicenter from Wired.com
Could Satellite TV Get Creamed by Cable?
My favorite free web-app...
..is no longer free :(
Well, there is an ad-based free version but that is no longer free in my book. Probably as enjoyable as calling the bank for the weather report..
Anyhoo, I'll probably splurge for the $3.95/month plan as I love calling in appointments to my Google Calendar and tasks into my Toodledo list.
New rate plans for Jott
August 11, 2008
iQuake
iPhone Games - Quake 3 Arena Ported to iPhone - iPhone Hacks
Maybe the greatest thing to happen to iPhone: will update when i jailbreak my touch and play it.
August 9, 2008
Exorbitant prices for HDMI cables
I've noticed that all sorts of basic cables for electronics are priced sky-high in recent years, particularly those carrying digital signals (1's and 0's) where it either works or doesn't and signal noise isn't really a problem. Anyhoo, CNet noticed as well: The economics of cables | The Pervasive Datacenter - CNET News.com
People tend not to comparison shop. It's something you need now. Prices are in tens of dollars not hundreds of dollars and are often considered in the context of the more expensive electronics the cable is being used with.
Here are a bunch of HDMI cables as good as any others for $10 or less.
July 28, 2008
Comcast vs. FCC
Comcast throttled peer-to-peer apps for years now and it's time to pay the price..
Comcast Spoiling for Fight With FCC
"We continue to assert that our network management practices were reasonable, wholly consistent with industry practices, and that we did not block access to websites or online applications, including peer-to-peer services," Comcast said.Network neutrality advocates hailed the news of the F.C.C.'s ruling.
"This vote reflects the bipartisan support for protecting consumers' access to the free and open internet," said Marvin Ammori, general counsel of Free Press and author of the original complaint.
July 18, 2008
To iPhone or not to iPhone?
This article says no.
Iphone 2.0: Why You're Better Off Avoiding the iPhone
the technology they use is explicitly chosen to divide people into separate digital cells, and to position Apple as sole warden. When your business depends on people paying for the privilege of being locked up, the prison better look and feel luxurious, and the bars better not be too visible.
June 25, 2008
Photoshop tips
Image Editing: Get 101 Photoshop Tips in Five MinutesPhotoshop enthusiast and frantic video editor Deke McClelland fits 101 tips for Adobe's premiere product into five minutes of video
June 13, 2008
Onboard Memory + USB Devices = Win!
Isn't it time we started putting device drivers for USB connected devices onto an onboard memory card?
Can you imagine plugging in your new printer or webcam and instead of also inserting that archaic CD-ROM you get an option to instantly install needed drivers and software as soon as you plug in the USB cable?
I think you can buy 256 or 512 MB flash drives for pennies now, so, come on people, let's make this happen.
June 12, 2008
Google's phone OS is coming out soon...
Video: Google demos the HTC Dream at I/O conference - Engadget
June 2, 2008
This would totally change my life.
Since I'm moving more and more to web-based apps, particularly Google's, this would really be a useful tool. However earlier this year Google announced support of new open-source smartphone code to support a variety of manufacturers.Krakow says Gphone is delayed to 2009. Wait, what? - Engadget
the whole Gphone buzz was pretty much killed dead when Android got real.
So which is it. Gphone or no?
May 6, 2008
Smack my Macbook
You have to play this YouTube clip to see how cool this really is...
Medallia Blog: SmackBook Pro
Can I put pictures of my employees on here and smack 'em around?
May 1, 2008
Wii dominance
The 7 Commandments All Video Games Should Obey - Page 7 | Cracked.com
Here are the three competing new-gen consoles, adjusted so that their size roughly reflects how powerful their hardware is in relation to each other.
Here are the same three consoles, adjusted so that their size reflects their worldwide sales in 2007:
Funny, until you realize that most Wii games could actually be played in a browser with Flash. Get me a Wiimote for my PC and I'm all set.
March 28, 2008
ASCII Star Wars
This is pretty great. Colors were reversed in Terminal on my Mac, but I guess it doesn't really matter.
Friday Fun: Watch Star Wars in Text via Telnet
from any command line, type telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl and sit back to watch the show
March 22, 2008
Use Google Docs to collaborate on the cheap for a News script
Working with Collaborators: Simultaneous editing and viewing
Working with Collaborators: Simultaneous editing and viewing
March 9, 2008
Google Maps Street View spotted in Chattanooga
My tech-savvy wife spotted and correctly identified the Google Map's street view car in Chattanooga last week. Here is a shot of it working in Knoxville:
Wonder what weird things they'll catch Chattanoogans doing.
March 6, 2008
YouTube HQ
This script is a little daunting (just the webpage, the install on Firefox was incredibly simple), but YouTube videos with actual watchable quality is great.
YouTube H.264 - Userscripts.org
Get it and watch Kitty Bowl:
February 29, 2008
Best description of GTD, from the man himself
Web Worker Daily » Archive David Allen Part 3: Really Getting it Done is Not Just Lists «
This is not another business du jour fad that’s going to go away. This is a whole new way to match your operational procedures to the way your brain really works.
Accept and believe. It really can change your life.
February 9, 2008
New router, slower speeds :(
So, after installing my new Linksys router with 802.11G 54Mb I am getting much slower connectivity on the LAN ports. Took many hours of tinkering just to get the thing to work with Comcast. Their tech support guy laughed at me.
UPDATE: Still gettng sluggish response. Speedtest.net won't even run with Linksys in place. Makes me very reluctant to try this: Turn your $60 router into a $600 router.
UPDATE 2: Getting a decent response on my Macbook now, but nothing at all with a PC laptop.
January 31, 2008
UTK sells out to RIAA..
However you feel about copyright laws, UTK went over and above the call of duty when asked for student identities as related to IP addresses used for downloading music illegally.
RIAA sees a 99.6% capitulation rate from students at UT
RIAA sees a 99.6% capitulation rate from students at UT
January 17, 2008
Finally somebody gets it.. but then they don't.
All TVs should be internet ready.. It just makes sense. Now there is one you can buy:
Lumenlab's Qmax PC-in-a-TV gets detailed, $10000 price tag - Engadget
The only question left, it seems, is why? But that is a little steep. If only MSN hadn't released MSN TV set-top boxes years ago and that had been built into Tivo..Oh well..
December 14, 2007
Blue men.. new YouTube feature..
YouTube: YouTube Adds Visual Search Tool
click the full-screen button on the lower right corner of the video. In the full-screen window, click the network-type button next to the play button.
December 11, 2007
Awesome new web application linked to sweatshops..
Jott, an awesome new web app lets you call an 800 number and receive your text transcribed as emails, text messages, or entries on your calendar or todo list. Very handy for me, since I still have neither a PDA or an iPhone. But, since I was initially amazed by the success, I later found out that the fancy new way of transcribing is people. JOTT.COM IS PEOPLE!!
Scheduling: Add Items to Gcal with a Phone Call using Jott to Google Calendar
I like Jott, but is anyone else slightly creeped out that they use actual people to do part of the transcription? Whenever I leave myself a message I can't help but think of the poor guy in India who sits around all day proof-reading whatever weird stuff people are Jotting.
So, they're making any money off of web-ads I suppose, since the service is free, but I wonder what those people in India make per diem? Ethical issue: Does my use of this service help or hurt these people? I lean toward help, since some entrepreneur came up with the idea and used the difference in wages to make it happen. But can't these people make a little more?
Chaz suggested I call up and list all the things I don't like about India. That's just mean.
December 10, 2007
We're here, we're geeks... Article on Geek Pride.
For non-geeks, it's definitely time to regroup -- OrlandoSentinel.com
Used to be, "geek" wasn't anything you wanted to be in life.
August 4, 2007
Newbie's Guide to Facebook*
Newbie's guide to Facebook | Webware : Cool Web apps for everyone
What is Facebook and why should you use it?
I finally succombed. I now have 7 friends. I also embedded Mocs News into my profile, which is no easy task.
August 3, 2007
Mocs News embedded
Just testing to see how easy it would be to place an embed code on the Mocs News webpage.
Touch-screen goodness
In my quest to make our new house even more tech-nerdy, I found this entry on touchscreens, which I am hoping to obtain a used one and use in my Kitchen as a Media Center viewing station and email (and maybe recipes).
Unthinkingly.com» Blog Archive » Wanted: An open-source, user-centered touchscreen platform
Fundamentally I think that touch is intimate and intuitive, and clearly touchable interfaces have incredible potential, especially for the folks that haven’t been brow-beaten into adapting to 20th-century conventions of computer interfaces like the QWERTY keyboard.
We'll just see how intimate it is. I bid on a kiosk screen on ebay that I want to enclose in an oak facade that matches the cabinets. Home-y!
July 9, 2007
Put ALL of your music online with MP3tunes
I am only 107 hours away from having my entire music library backed up online in a folder that will then sync with any computer I set up the Oboe client on. I LOVE this idea, so we'll see how well it all works out.
Backup, Sync and Listen to Your Digital Music Collection with an MP3tunes Locker @ MP3tunes.com
July 6, 2007
Nintendo beating the pants off of Sony
Wii outselling PlayStation 3 'six to one' - Engadget
Wii outselling PlayStation 3 'six to one'
Wifi/Cell phones coming..
I've been waiting for this for a long time..
When you're out and about, it works like any other phone; calls eat up your monthly minutes as usual. But when it's in a Wi-Fi wireless Internet hot spot, this phone offers a huge bargain: all your calls are free.
T-Mobile Announces WiFi Meshing Cellphone
June 26, 2007
Laser TVs and projectors
I've been wondering about this for a long time. Seems to me that projection is limited by the contrast ratio, since the black areas never seem black enough in relation to the bright areas. But, if the bright areas suddenly got amazingly brighter, then we'd be onto something.. Lasers could do just that.
Laser TVs launching Christmas 2007 - Engadget
The new sets are touted to be half the price, twice as good, and use a quarter of the electricity of conventional plasma and LCD TVs and be half the weight and depth of modern plasmas.
June 25, 2007
Underwater Camera Housing
I've been wanting to do this for a long time:
Underwater Camcorder Mod! $10! - video powered by Metacafe
DIY: Build your own underwater camcorder housing - Lifehacker
June 23, 2007
Real nice China!
Geekologie - Greatest USB Drive Ever
Sad thing is, USB cables cost almost as much as flash memory..
June 17, 2007
Online video editing tool
YouTube launches online editing tool | Webware : Cool Web apps for everyone
YouTube launches online editing tool | Webware : Cool Web apps for everyone
YouTube has begun offering a Web-based editing tool that is apparently provided by Adobe Systems.The "remixer," which is branded with an Adobe logo, enables users to create more professional-looking videos by splicing together media such as video clips, photos, music, graphics and other effects, according to information found on the site.
June 15, 2007
June 9, 2007
June 8, 2007
Wireless power? Now we're on to something..
I've been reading about this things you lie your cell phone or iPod on and they charge them for a whle now. Wireless everything? I'll bet it won't run a hair dryer.The end of the plug? Scientists invent wireless device that beams electricity through your home | the Daily Mail
June 7, 2007
Going to try this soon... LogMeIn for Mac
Wonder how it will handle the 1920x1280 resolution of the studio display at work?
LogMeIn - Remote Access and Desktop Control Software for your PC
LogMeIn enables you to connect to your Mac computers from anywhere in the world; from any other Internet-enabled Mac, Windows PC or hand-held device.
Does your TV have a network jack?
So this is finally happening. I've always thought that the next generation of HDTVs should not only be higher quality, but capable of doing more than TVs currently do. Yet many people don't seem to be to enthralled about checking email, weather, RSS feeds, etc. on their TV. Why not?
Sony fleshes out details and pricing for Internet Video Link - Engadget
May 30, 2007
Super Hi Awesome Vision TV
IGN: Super Hi-Vision Crushes 1080p
The recently unveiled Super Hi-Vision standard features a video resolution of 7,680 x 4,320—16 times higher resolution than 1920 x 1080 (1080p).
May 25, 2007
Hey Comcast...
...maybe dropping G4 and other channels in the middle of a fight for primacy of copper wires into our homes isn't such a good idea.
So, I know Comcast does great things for the community, people volunteer with shelters and other projects, and they do provide fairly reliable cable and internet service. However.. Cable Bill Dead, Chattanooga Invites AT&T To Provide Video Service | WDEF News 12 | News, Weather and Sports for Chattanooga and the Tennessee Valley, let's roll out the red carpet for AT&T to come into Chattanooga to provide cable and broadband services.
First of all, lack of competition is never good. Do I think prices will drop with cable alternatives? Not really, especially since I'm still dismayed that prices keep going up and up for cellular service and broadband in general, not to mention cable TV. But will we have more options? Certainly. As a consumer, that's always good.
How will it affect public access and other educational broadcasts? We don't know. We can imagine worst-case scenarios, but there are probably some positives that could come from this as well. Time will tell. Was quite a lobby effort against this though, and I can't help but think, if that money had been used to buy airtime for educational broadcasts, at least it wouldn't have gone down the drain.
I did my part by broadcasting MTSU's talk show on this topic which did much to inform me and hopefully this community about the issue. However, I never saw Comcast's argument that we should all be so concerned about "playing by the rules." The community-based approach to cable/internet franchising is great, but if state-wide negotiating gives us choices, let the market decide I say.
Thoughts?
May 24, 2007
Willis Server 1.0
So, I embarked upon setting up a webserver tonight, based on the recommendations in the iPodifier Google group and with directions from this site.
I'm not proud of what I've done. The only next step to take is partitioning my hard drive and installing Linux. Why won't these tech demons just let me be?
The goal is to use harness the power of web 2.0 for my own destructive purposes.
So far, I've been able to add my most-recent Futurama DVR recordings to my iPod, but what next?
Another orb function
Orb works TiVo with DVR Everywhere - Engadget
I'm just saying.. Orb does everything. Last night it assimilated my DVR recordings and wouldn't let me watch Lost. I gladly obey the Orb.
May 23, 2007
May 21, 2007
Microbloggering..
Well, I've gone and done it. I'm microbloggering in addition to blogging. Twitter / cmwillis
I guess I'm in a race to see which I can make least interesting, the original blog or the new thing.
May 18, 2007
Video Playlist
This is a test of my sharing capabilities with Orb: MyCast your digital media with Orb 2.0 remote pc access software
May 9, 2007
Software only slingbox
So, this service does basically everything I've ever dreamt of with my stored media: MyCast your digital media with Orb 2.0 remote pc access software
Works incredibly from my Windows Media Center to my Macbook while at home, but if it truly streams recorded or live TV anywhere, to any device with a browser--well, my mind is pretty much blown.
UPDATE:
Here is a playlist from my home library:
Now, can I share recorded TV or videos? Looks like you can, but I don't really need that since YouTube works fine.
Also, just tried to stream video from work and the audio was choppy (made everyone sound like Satan). But audio files worked great.
Search in black - save a tree.. eventually.
Blackle - Energy Saving Search
Google, which has a white background and gets about “200 million queries a day” could reduce global energy use by 750 Megawatt-hours a year by simply changing the color of its homepage to black.
April 24, 2007
Things I want, but can't justify..
HiPE intros voice-operated Drive-N car PCs with Vista MCE - Engadget
April 16, 2007
April 9, 2007
Cool electric car, just tiny
Hybrid Technologies L1X-75: Zero-60 in 3.1 Seconds, Batteries Included - Popular Mechanics
Slipping into the racing seats is like folding yourself into a carry-on bag
How about an all-electric grand prix?
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April 7, 2007
Sweet!
'Guitar Hero' Controllers Work On PCs
If you've never played this game you really must.. It's the rockin'est thing to ever happen for non-rockers.
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April 3, 2007
Apple TV is actually a slow Mac.. $299 for an old Mac? Not too shabby.
Kind of cool..
Apple TV running full version of OS X - Engadget
This effectively creates the least expensive Mac ever made -- at $299powered by performancing firefox
April 2, 2007
DRM-free music is on the horizon...
Apple Strikes a Chord [Fool.com] April 02, 2007
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March 27, 2007
March 24, 2007
Sitemeter stats
What You Talkin Bout Willis - http://cmwillis.chattablogs.com/
According to them I've had about 15,000 visits.
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March 12, 2007
Performancing Add-on
Performancing | Firefox Add-ons | Mozilla Corporation
Just trying this out again. I think the image went down earlier..
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