How I Learned to Stop Paying For TV Shows Twice and Love the Internet. More.
A couple weeks ago I was surfing around Hulu and had a much-delayed epiphany: Dude, almost everything I watch on my satellite TV service is online. Of course, I’ve long been aware of options like Apple TV, Boxee, Mac mini hacks and torrent sites, but honestly those options involve purchasing hardware or fiddling with alpha (or questionably legal) software. I just don’t have any desire to mess with all of that right now. I have a TV. I have a computer. And I have shows streaming from Hulu, Fancast, NBC, CBS, ABC and on and on. Certainly, I thought, there’s a relatively easy way for my wife and I to watch online content together on the TV with a minimal amount of fussing.
The Setup.
Caveat lector: My setup is terribly simple. I am no electronics wiz. I will probably be of no help to you if you ask for my advice.
My goal was to:
- Continue to be able to connect my iTunes library to my stereo via Airport Express.
- Use my stereo for audio. I accidentally discovered that the audio from Hulu’s 480p videos actually sounds quite awesome through my little shelf unit.
- Avoid any cable switcheroos when I was ready to watch TV. Plug video & audio into the laptop and watch something quickly.
Below is a schematic of how all my components are connected:
And here is a photo of the whole setup in action:
It’s Not All Rivers of Chocolate and Lollipop Forests.
There are plenty of downsides, but I’m willing to live with them:
- The laptop is not always left connected to the TV, so that has to be connected to video & audio first.
- The stereo has to be turned on to AUX.
- The TV acts as the primary display, and it’s kind of hard to see what’s on screen because of the scan lines (yes, I have a lame TV). I usually have to navigate to the video I want to watch on the laptop display and then drag the browser window to the TV and fullscreen it. The reason I don’t have my laptop set up as the primary display is that some video services (ABC’s is one, I believe) will only go fullscreen on the primary display (nice job there). Most sites will allow fullscreen viewing on whichever display the browser is on.
- Yeah, you have to go find the video online. Though by using Hulu’s RSS feeds I can use Google Reader as my video dashboard and quickly get to new shows.
- New shows aren’t online till the next day.
- Videos aren’t up forever, so you have a window of time in which to watch an episode — or lose it.
- No remote control.
- No audio from the TV’s built-in speakers, though I suspect that I could connect a composite audio cable from the DVI adapter to the TV and remedy that. Not that I miss my janky TV speakers…
- No live TV, though I am considering the purchase of an HD antenna to pick up local channels.
- The biggest headache with this setup is that I have not yet found a way to keep my stereo connected to the Airport Express and the laptop at the same time. I tried running both the laptop audio cable and the Airport Express audio cable to the stereo by using a 2 Male-to-1 Female 3.5mm Y-adapter, but with both male jacks plugged in the sound is horrible. I’m not sure exactly why it’s so bad. So, for now, I have to unplug audio from Airport Express and plug it into the laptop when I want to watch a show.
Not True Love, But Close Enough For Now.
So that’s basically it. Not all roses, but not bad as a new feature of a service I was already paying for. And though I no longer have the equipment by which to compare the two, I swear that (at least) Hulu’s 480p video quality is better than what I was getting with satellite. And now that I am using my stereo for sound, the audio is better, too. Despite an expected number of downsides, this switch to internet-only TV is turning out to be a major win—not the least of which is that I don’t burn away hours in front of the TV watching stuff because it’s there. The act of watching TV is now so deliberate (and slightly annoying) that I spend more time doing things like writing nerdy blog posts about TV instead of watching TV. Um, win?
Oh, and Hulu: I love you.
Rock The Dock (with Sifter).
A couple months ago, Garrett came to me and said, “I’m using Fluid to keep Sifter in my Dock, and the logo we did isn’t working out in that context.” He sent me a screenshot, and sure enough—ouch. Not a pleasant sight, that small diamond shape amidst other icons specifically designed for use in the operating system.
So we kicked around a number of ideas, including one that would involve redrawing the sifter in an entirely different perspective, but came back to the simpler idea of somehow altering or enhancing the existing logo. It’s not that there was a compelling brand reason for this, it’s just that the object definition, idea & physics of the logo are all there already.
Question: Do you like sketches with embarrassingly bad handwriting? Then peep this, my interweb friend:
A number of different ideas came from sketching, but Garrett and I ultimately circled back around to the cleanest, simplest idea (and, go figure, it was the option we liked best before sketching even began): that of the sifter sitting atop a clear bin. Hey, it could happen IRL. As you can see below, the idea went through a series of permutations, some very pronounced and some very subtle. I believe there were about 30 “stages” from start to finish, though you only see the most differentiated changes here:
Parts of the original logo had to be changed to work as an icon; most obvious is the thickening up of the wooden frame. The original frame was simply too thin and appeared disproportionally small compared to the bin. The mesh at the bottom of the sifter has been simplified significantly to remove unnecessary visual clutter that was obscuring the pile of material in the center of the sifter.
The new bin & sifted material was its own challenge. It had to have some visual interest, but there’s not much that’s interesting about a plastic cube. The material inside the cube, logically, had to be mostly finely-sifted material; the pebbles giving interest to the material sitting in the sifter up top didn’t belong in the bin (and you can see I tried to slip them in at one point, unsuccessfully :). I had to rely on fine-tuned gradients and contrast to give the material shape, volume and interest. I think there’s enough there to satisfy viewers at both very small and very large sizes.
So there you have it. If you’re using Sifter with Fluid, you can download the new icon at NextUpdate.com. Enjoy!
A Suggested TV Commercial Script for Tobacco Lobbyists.
Guys, this meme has been working wonders for the high fructose corn syrup cause. Maybe it’ll help take the heat off you, too.
[Scene: a youthful couple is enjoying a picnic on a sunny day in the park.]
Mary: Hey, John. Would you like to take a drag off my cigarette?
John [ignorantly]: What, are you trying to kill me?
Mary [recoiling at John’s insanity]: What? No! It’s just a cigarette.
John [like a putz]: Yeah, and you know what they say about cigarettes…
Mary [bravely standing up for what she believes in]: Why no, John. I don’t. What do they say about cigarettes?
John: [stammering like the idiot he is]: Um.. well, that… um.. you know… erm…
Mary [gloating in her own superior intellect and John’s abject stupidity]: What? That they’re made from all-natural tobacco, farmed in rich American™ soil and rolled in quality paper products?
John [his crooked smile and nervous laugh admitting his general ignorance]: Um, I guess so. [laughs] Sure, Mary. I’d love to take a deep, pleasurable drag of that smooth American tobacco.
[Fin]
How to Write an Episode of Fringe.
- Open the show with a scene of some random person with “special abilities” wreaking havoc on innocent people.
- Agent Dunham and the X-Squad to the rescue!
- Insert predictable field research scenes with lots of confused & incredulous looks.
- Peter “Pacey” Bishop says something stunningly witty and passively crushes on Agent Dunham.
- Dr. Bishop says or does something nutty.
- Conflict!
- Dr. Bishop proposes some crazy solution to contain the situation.
- The doctor’s zany solution works! What luck!
- The X-Squad saves the day!
- Optional: Agent Dunham sees dead people.
- Queue ominous music.
- Creepy Thin Man Who Never Blinks appears and mutters something about — dun dun dun — “The Pattern!”, just in time for the show to end.
- Open up another Word document and start writing another paint-by-numbers plot line.
Loving: LoveLikeFire
This entry is long overdue, as it has been well over a year since I stumbled across this band. And what with them playing next week in Dallas at The Prophet Bar, they’re sorta on my mind. Not that I would write a blog post with the hopes that the band might read it and invite me backstage or anything. Psssh. (I’ll be the really tall guy with the cute redhead at his side, guys — just signal me when you want us to come backstage.)
I’ve been impressed with LoveLikeFire since the very first time I heard them. I’m also pretty sure I immediately twittered a link to the song I was listening to. And my wife and I even tried to go see them play in Denton last October, but the show was fraught with issues beyond the band’s control and we never saw them play. Disappointing. :(
Anyhow…
LoveLikeFire hail from San Francisco and play music that I guess would be labeled “dream pop”, though I hear Britpop, punk, indie rock and shoegazer influences (among others) in the songs. I find that LLF’s music mixes well with that of Lush, Minipop, The High Violets, Stars and Blonde Redhead. Suffice it to say: it’s the good kind of music.
The band has 2 EPs out, Bed of Gold & An Ocean in the Air, and has just finished recording their first LP. I assume they will be playing new songs on tour. ♫ Awesome! ♪
And because LoveLikeFire is so awesome, they make it easy for you to listen to their music. In addition to the 2 songs linked up below (which you can also right click + download), you can listen to the entire An Ocean in the Air EP on the band’s Music page.
Enjoy!
Listen: LoveLikeFire – From A Tower | LoveLikeFire – Unlighted Shadow
Extras
Friend Me?
Hooray, stream of consciousness time.
One of the things that has constantly bothered me about social networks, and made me take pause as I interact with them, is the exclusive, unchangeable use of the word “friend” to describe the relationship you are about to enter into with others.
I actually have a queue of friend requests stagnating at each and every social networking site I belong to because I just don’t feel like I’m “friends” with these individuals. And I feel guilty, because even though I know that the web wants me to accept a very broad definition of what a friend is, I cannot help but resist. They’re acquaintances, cool people, etc., but not really friends. Our interactions are amicable, but not at the “friend” level. Admittedly, that’s my own assessment. I feel bad for leaving people hanging, like I am rejecting them. If a different word was used in place of or in addition to “friend”, my networks might be more inclusive.
Seriously, am I the only one that has this inner dialogue every time a friend request comes in?
The best part is that I often break my own rules, sending friend requests to people I am only tangentially related to. I waffle. Consistency FAIL. (Sorry if I’m plunging you guys into the same quandary.)
Some networks scratch this itch for me. Linkedin works best for my mind; it’s more diplomatic, probably because it is slanted towards professional relationships. Instead of trying to classify the relationship within the act of connecting, Linkedin simply phrases it as “Add Joe Dotcom to your network”. Only after entering the linking process does Linkedin classify your relationship with that person (a very nice feature). And after that, everyone is a “contact”. I like the openness of that word.
Twitter is also Jared-friendly, simply referring to everyone as “followers”. A nice, unassuming relationship identifier which also happens to be pretty exclusive to the Twitter brand. Double win.
Flickr lets me assign a person as a Contact, Friend, or Family, each with increasing levels of access to my content. And, like Linkedin, people you add are generically referred to as “Contacts” thereafter. Very nice.
Maybe the aversion to the mandatory “friends” label in this context is generational? Maybe “friend” is the new “contact”? I mean, I get it. “Friend” is simple, open to interpretation and bubbling with the friendly web 2.0 goodness that all the kids are crazy about these days. Everyone’s jumping on the “friend” bandwagon.
Still, it just bugs me. It bugs me to have a queue of real people in a holding pattern because my social networks let me have friends or nothing at all. I guess my point is that “friend” seems like too personal a term for the kinds of relationships most of us have with each other online.
How do you decide to friend someone?
500XL Speakers from Fred: A Review for Your Reading Pleasure
I’ve been eyeballing these speakers ever since they hit the Fred website, so when Patrick Haney pointed me towards a store that was actually selling them, I had to buy. Like, immediately.
And they arrived today!
Style
With a few minor discrepancies, probably due to manufacturing and assembly needs, the 500XLs faithfully duplicate the original iPod earbud design — just scaled up 500 times. They look really cool. As soon as I unpacked them, I had a small audience around my desk putting the giant earbuds up to their ears and such. The scaling up of such a small object achieves quite a humorous effect.
Sound
I wasn’t expecting too much as far as sound quality, but I have to say that, even with my lowered expectations, I was still pretty disappointed. I’m not a true audiophile so I can’t throw out any awesome jargon, but in layman’s terms the bass is really weak and the output is generally thin. In that sense, they truly are a faithful recreation of the Apple earbuds, which also delivered a fail boat full of bad sound quality. ZING!
In addition to the poor bass response, the speakers are very much unshielded, and pick up the glorious byproduct of our wireless lives: GSM buzz. Best to keep these speakers away from your phone, son.
Cords
I found the cords to be sufficiently long (both plug into the battery pack); the audio cable is 41” and the USB cable is 42”.
In Summation
Overall, I’d classify these speakers as a great novelty item, but not really suited for any kind of serious music listening. I was hoping to replace my Altec Lansing desktop speakers (which are “attractive” in a Windows XP sort of way), but I don’t think the 500XLs are going to be able to provide the level of deep, rich sound necessary to properly deliver the sounds of carnage as I play Team Fortress 2. Not that I’m terribly disappointed; after all, these speakers really are about novelty. I’d definitely consider them a chuckle-worthy gift for fans of Apple and/or design.
500XLs run about $40.
How iPhone Has Changed My Life, Solved World Hunger and Given My Car A High-Gloss Wax Job.
Okay, perhaps that headline is a bit overblown.
I’ve never owned a smartphone. In fact, I’ve owned dumb phones. Very dumb phones. Like, “Hay, muh name is Cletus. The internets? Ain’t that the little stretchy net on th’ ping-pong table?” dumb.
So my switch to the iPhone was probably more filled with magic and unicorns than the average person’s. I mused about what life with an iPhone would mean a while back, and I now know that I nailed it. I didn’t need an iPhone. That is to say, prior to walking out of the store with my crisp hott iPhone bag I didn’t need an iPhone. Now? Good grief, what kind of dirty Moorlock life did I used to lead? No mobile email? No video? No little pulsing blue dot on a map showing me exactly where I was, with disturbing precision? Inexcusable. Man was not meant to live without such necessities.
This is all to say that I love my iPhone, Steve Jobs is a shrewd, shrewd salesman and if I ever have to go back to a DumbPhone I will probably chastise it constantly, forget to pick it up from soccer practice and why can’t you be more like Lloyd Braun, you bad lazy phone.
Loving: The Submarines - Honeysuckle Weeks
I don’t know why this album isn’t getting more buzz across the ol’ internets, because it is pretty much the epitome of a joyous summer album. Blake & John are back with their second full-length record, full of retro 60’s sounds, delicious melodies and the world’s most unsung musical instrument: the tambourine. Viva la tambourine. Viva Honeysuckle Weeks.
- Check out my favorite song, “The Wake Up Song,” on my June Muxtape.
- Listen to “Xavia” on Songza.com
- Listen to “You, Me & The Bourgeoisie” on Songza.com
Wherein I Shamelessly Pimp My New Employer's Service.
As I post this, I am about to enjoy a 10-minute commute to a brand new job. I have joined the team of energetic and passionate folks at Viewzi. For the uninitiated, Viewzi is a visual contextual search engine. Instead of delivering search results right away in a standard text-based manner like most search engines, Viewzi answers your search request with a “view mix.” That view mix offers you a variety of ways that you can visualize your search results. Once you choose a “view,” you experience your search results. Today marks the launch of the public beta, so we are all excited to see how Viewzi is received by a wider audience.
The service launches today at 7:00 p.m. CST.
I’ll be handling a variety of visual design responsibilities at Viewzi, both public-facing (views) and admin-facing. I’ll miss my design compadres in Room 404 a whole lot, but I’m excited to get my hands into all the stuff Viewzi has got going on here and design some wicked cool things!
You're reading my Weblogue. Tell your friends.
A full listing of all my writing is available in the Archives, and you may want to peruse my Portfolio if you are really bored.