Joost started off as an invite only internet TV streaming application. Last October it dropped the invite only status and allowed users to sign up and start using a desktop application to stream TV channels with commercials in a p2p (peer to peer) fashion. After a few months Joost closed it’s doors and began to make the transition to web based streaming (similar to hulu), but required its own browser plugin beyond the normal flash plugin most users are accustomed to. Earlier today they finally opened their doors again to be fully web based without the need for a fancy browser plugin.
I am really glad to see more and more TV streaming interent sites and applications, but I think Joost might be late to the party. Hulu provides much better quality video. I think we might end up seeing which service is better but the ease of use and the over all available content. Joost was first when bringing streaming TV to the users desktop, but can they catch up other sites that have brought it even further?
Apple is throwing another small media event this year, and it will focus on refreshing their notebook lines. There has been tons of speculation on what the new notebooks are going to look like and what new hardware is going to be used. As I had promised, I have gathered a quick list of liveblogs for you to follow tomorrow and as soon as Apple releases the QuickTime stream of the event I’ll get that up too.
Liveblogs: Macworld | Gizmodo | Engadget | Mac|Life | Ars Techinca | Cult of Mac
In the past I have gotten requests to show who is going to be updating live on Twitter, so here you go.
Live Twitter: Macworld | MacRumors | TUAW
Update: I forgot to add that I will be available for chatting on IRC in the #punklabs channel on the chat.zoite.net network.
Update 2: I also forgot to mention the event starts at 10 AM PST.
Boxee, a social media player (sort of like Last.fm but can do a whole lot more), has made its way on to the Apple TV. Naturally I have to investigate. The Apple TV is a great set top box that allows you to watch movies, play music and view photos all from iTunes. You can also rent movies directly from it without syncing your own media. You can jailbreak these nice little media centers to play various other video formats beyond the scope of iTunes/QuickTIme. I am not going to go into heavy detail, but I have hacked our Apple TV to enable playing DiVX and other video formats.
Here’s where Boxee comes in. Boxee is based on XBMC and compiles what you and your friends are watching to a profile. The specifics you can catch on the Boxee site itself. Forgive me if I am skipping over all the details. Since Boxee allows me to stream media from my Mac (or any box that has SMB sharing enabled) can watch any videos without the need to transcode or SSH into my Apple TV (which other various hacks) to get the videos to play. I am going to go over how I got Boxee on my Apple TV and provide some pictures. I am going to warn you though, I am a little rusty at taking pictures in the dark of a projector. So bare with the quality, it’s been awhile.
I follow a simple tutorial courtesy of iClarified, what I am going to give you here is some pictures of the outcome and what I used to carry out this tutorial. I’ll also mention any problems I happen to run into a long the way.
How to install boxee on your Apple TV:
Small note: This process is Mac only. I am running Apple TV firmware versions 2.2 during these setup instructions.
- Download the ATVUSB-Creator (http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/)
- Quick point here, I actually had a problem running the creator on my iMac , this is a known issue and unless you have another Mac lying around the house, this can be a snag in the entire operation. A fix is in the works.
- Connect a bootable USB drive
- I used a Fujitsu 2.5″ 100 GB drive in an external self powered USB enclosure.
- Run the ATVUSB-Creator
- Eject and unplug the USB drive once the creator is finished.
- Plug in the USB drive to your Apple TV
- If your Apple TV is on, you can just hold down - and Menu until it reboots. Otherwise Plugin/turnon your Apple TV.
- Once the bootloader on screen says it is finished, unplug your Apple TV and remove the USB drive.
- Pkugin your Apple TV and once the regular menu appears there should be Boxee and XBMC menu options
- Go to Boxee, and choose Update so it can download the app, simply follow the instructions on screen.
- Once updated, a new menu option will appear called XBMC/Boxee, you can run either app from here.
Some issues to Look Out for
- When running Boxee, if the remote doesn’t seem to respond when hitting the Play or Menu buttons, you will need to Unpair your remote in the Apple TV Settings->General->Remotes option.
Some Pictures
I do have invites to give away. So if you are interested leave a comment and fill out your email address (only I can see it in the backend) and I’ll get one shot off.
Update (12/18/2008): There is a Windows XP/Vista version of the patchstick creator available here: http://code.google.com/p/atvusb-creator/downloads/list
Update (12/21/2008): Boxee will be opening up their alpha testing on January 6th. So if you haven’t gotten an invite you don’t have much longer to wait. Since we’re so close to the opening date I am no longer handing out invites. Sorry everyone.
Perhaps I am bias, but I love the comics on SCTV. MegaNice9 has the best faces for whatever topic she is targeting. So kick up your feet and enjoy today’s adventure of Adam ‘n’ Eve.
This is a post in my series “Road to Xcode.” I am currently reading Programming in Objective-C 2.0 by Stephen Kochan.
I know it has been awhile since I have updated everyone on my coding progress, but do not fear, I have been working through various exercises and continuing on with my current Objective C book. The chapters are starting to get longer and containing more information. I don’t want to rush through the chapters without making sure I have a solid understanding of what is being discussed.
Chapter 4. Data Types and Expressions
A lot of information was covered in this chapter. I went over data types, constants, arithmetic expressions, assignment operators, bit operators, and Bool and Complex types.
I admit to getting a little confused with octal and hex constants as well as bit shift operators. I am sure once I see more examples using them I’ll get into the groove. Otherwise data types and operators are pretty easy to understand. Another big concept in this chapter was order of operations, which is also pretty simple and easy to look up if memory needs to be jogged.
I did spend some time with PolyVector working through an example Calculator. I went through line by line explaining to him what each line did and what the expected outcome should be. I am still getting used to reading code and understanding classes, objects and methods. I am not extremely fluent in writing my own code yet, but it is getting easier.
There is nothing more exciting to me than learning about our origins as human beings. This topic goes much deeper than just the cliché poster on the wall of the ape gradually standing up to become a man. Our journey as conscious beings starts from the most simple of organisms.
Your Inner FIsh by Neil Shubin introduces us to the world of evolution every so slightly by taking us back to not so long ago (in Earth age mind you) to when the first animal started to crawl out on land. If you are not extremely into science this book might change all that. It doesn’t bombard you with huge latin science nomenclature but rather starts you off on a simple dig. You relive Shubin’s fixation with paleontology and discovery and before you know it you have been through so much evidence of our own body’s history.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and was sad to see it end. If you have any inkling of curiosity in evolution or just how your own body was built, give this book a try. It is non threatening and easy to understand.
This month holds the one day out of the year bloggers come together to take on world issues. On October 15th 5,000 blogs with 10 million readers will discuss poverty. I’ve already announced Atomac’s participation in this years BAD, but wanted to send out a reminder and discuss a small part you can do to also participate in this years theme.
Lit Bit has started a book club this month and the book chosen is part of Blog Action Day. I will be participating in reading Out of Poverty by Paul Polak and discussing it on IRC in the Lit Bit channel on the 14th.
As for Atomac’s actual BAD article, you’ll have to wait for the 15th to see what I have in store. And if you have a blog or website, please register and be part of the solution.
If you missed the first US Presidential debate last night between Obama and McCain never fear, I have you covered.
iTunes has an entire section devoted to the Presidential debates via podcasts (iTunes Store link). I will be following the CBS Presidential Debate video podcast (iTunes Store link), and downloading PBS videos via bittorrent.
Since I missed the debate last night and am currently in the process of downloading the videos to watch I don’t have any of my own commentary and I’ll consider writing up a small article after each debate I watch and would love to hear everyone else’s opinion regarding how the candidates did etc.
This is a post in my series “Road to Xcode.” I am currently reading Programming in Objective-C 2.0 by Stephen Kochan.
A Small Note
This second set of journal entries I began reading Programming in objective-C but then went ahead and bought the second edition which is where I am picking up here.
Chapter 3. Classes, Objects and Methods
This chapter was much more thorough than the previous book I started off with when beginning my coding endeavor. While I understood what a Class, Object, and Method were I had no clue how to properly use them. Now I understand how to declare, define and use each in a very limited basis. My head is kind of full right now and I am honestly now sure how to demonstrate my new found knowledge. Each chapter does end with a set of exercises. I was thinking about actually showing each exercise here along with my answers. It would be a little work on my part but I am willing to do so if people are interested. It would really be a much more open way of showing my progress.
