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Slashback: Revolutionism, Media, Oregon
Sounds and pictures from the same box -- impossible! An anonymous reader writes "The HP Digital Media Receiver ( discussed here before) is available for sale at CompUSA and online. The wired version is $199, and the wireless one is $299.
I've been using it for a little while, and I really like it so far. It took a while for the PC software to start serving, but now its fine. It found all my playlists and digital photos on the first pass, and the network setup worked properly too. I'd like to see higher-resolution photos, but it's a pretty cool way to show the pictures to my less-techie friends.
Also, I installed the PC software on both of my home PCs, and the Receiver automatically finds the music on both! It did have a bunch of duplicates (which made it easy for me to go prune out all my dual mp3s), but it was pretty cool. You can't edit a playlist at the TV set, which is a bit of a bummer, but I use WinAmp on my PC anyway, and that worked fine. I like the interface on the TV a lot (although it's a little dull after a while), and it sorted most of my media properly. Some of my MP3s ended up in weird places, but I guess that's from the ID3 tags?
One other thing - I am pretty sure I read somewhere that the Receiver runs Linux. Did anyone else see this too? The only other thing about it I didn't really like was the lack of a reset button. There is a power button, but it didn't reset the device when I pushed it, so I had to unplug it once.
Anyhow, I'm sure there are going to be a ton more products like this one out there soon, but I definitely prefer this to the Prismiq and the Audiotron. It's a much more intuitive box, although a front-panel LCD would be a really nice add!"
Since the general welfare means you, too. Cooper Stevenson writes "Thanks to all of those who called, wrote, and emailed their Legislators in Oregon, House Bill 2892 will get a hearing as covered by the Oregonian:
'A new bill would make Oregon the first state to take a formal stance against the hefty fees and technological limitations of software produced by large corporations such as Microsoft.''A House committee is scheduled to consider a proposal that promotes "open-source" software, which doesn't charge recurring fees and enables customers to alter the software code, making it more compatible with other programs.'
Global neural links sought. Controlio writes "With the first truly televised war underway, for the first time we have media members armed with sat trucks chasing the folks with the automatic weapons around. Several fixed cameras are mounted around Baghdad, and members of the media from all around the world are sending reports from the field using sat uplinks and video phones. So the question is, those of you with access to a Big Dish, have you found any wild feeds yet? I live in Michigan (U.S.), and have only been able to pinpoint local media backhauls (like Fox's news backhaul to their local affiliates), but nothing from abroad. Anyone out there have any sat and channel information for either the Baghdad cams, foreign news agencies, or best of all, the news feeds from the front line?"
This question is a good followup to a recent question posted as an Ask Slashdot seeking unbiased news about the current war.
I remember people used to say, when I would demonstrate my C-64 to them, that you would never be able to watch tv-quality video on the computer. Now when I play tv-quality video on my computer, I'm upset about how inferior it is, running in it's tiny little postage stamp frame and or all big and blocky.
Course, we'll never be able to play HDTV on a computer.
Here's a wild feed if anyone's interested.
You had me at "dicks fuck assholes".
Revolution OS now available on media that the Revolution OS isn't supposed to be able to play...
What's this, a free software music video? this is going to be one of dumbest, geekiest things ever created. I can't wait to watch it.
they're rebels
I highly recommend BroadQ's software. It uses a Sony Playstation to play MP3's DivX's etc over a home network. Its a work in progress but it rocks! BroadQ.co
They are not kidding.
I saw on Japanese morning news that they got a reporter (or a few, I guess) riding with US troops in humvees through the Iraq desert.
The interesting part is - it's a woman! (and quite a good looking one) In the show she was complaining how hot and stuffy the desert suit is, and talking about the gas masks. I mean not to stereotype, but she would (from the look) fit to be one of those fragile-looking japanese ladies that will probably become a housewife in a few years.
I can hardly imagine what would happen if they really hit on some serious fighting. More interestingly, considering that there always seem to be rape-incidents a couple times a year with US troops stationed in S.Korea and Japan, I do wonder if the Iraqies pose more danger to her instead of her travel companions... Well unless she likes it that way; but anyhow... I doubt those troopes have their minds set on fighting - or, would fight more valiently than any other squadron in the force...
My life in the land of the rising sun.
...Won't stop me from buying it.
I'm all for Open standards, and I have all of my music encoded as ogg on my machine, but I have to say that I'm disappointed with the sound quality of it.
You can debate it all you like, but I've found that Ogg produces some sound artifacts that MP3 doesn't, that are more irritating to my big ol' ears.
I currently have no clever signature witicism to add here.
HP sent me a FREE copy.
I got several calls from various marketing/survey types (must have clicked on a box on their website one day expressing interest in Linux) and after asking a few questions said they'd be sending me information. Imagine my surprise when the package contained a DVD of Revolution OS.
Sorry to say I haven't watched it yet (kids thought it over-the-top geeky and refused access to the DVD player).
mms is a menu system for playback of music and movies. It supports framebuffer/dxr3 and lircd/keyboard.
Did anyone bother to write a Linux DVD player for unencrypted videos? What's the point of writing a player if it won't get you arrested and exiled to a Turkish MPAA prison?
j/k, I assume that the files are just unencrypted mpegs found after mounting the disc?
You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair.
Can it play Ogg Vor... Oh. Never mind.
-twb
It's not encrypted or region coded so it's perfectly legal to watch.
Not entirely. As far as I know, AC3 audio and MPEG-2 video are patented in the United States.
Will I retire or break 10K?
Umm, I was at the Open Source Weekend here in Ottawa, Canada January 25th and 26th and they showed Revolution OS and gave several DVD copies away as prizes. So the DVD version has been out for a while.
I can only assume that this DVD has more stuff? *shrug*
----- rL
They left out that it is for state agencies, not for private companies. The bill is here: House Bill 2892. There have been other slash stories on it as well. And a nice Google Search can get tons of info.
This is a good bill.
Oregon also has some Bad Bills like SB742 which would create terrorists of peace protestors, give them life in prison, and require local law enforcement to monitor "questionable" organizations. Hmm. A nice Google search can net you more opinions on SB742. It is disturbing!
Either I'm looking at the wrong bird at the wrong time or whatever, but all I'm seeing is backhauls (lots) too. I find it quite surprising that nobodys snagged a decent feed considering how many uplinks are going on... back to looking......
My mother in law is worse than yours...and yes I will trade!
i think it was hp or ibm.
anyhow i filled out the survey and answered a phone call they the promised dvd never came.
either way i can't understand why Revolution OS is not free for downloading.
SB742 has died in comittee.
May it rot in Hell.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Close, but not quite enough... I want a similar box with a DVD (ROM) drive in it, so one can walk up and play physical DVDs in it, too. I was all set to buy a GoVideo D2730, but SonicBlue decided to go bankrupt and sell off the product lines instead of releasing them.
Yeah, I know, I DO plan to build a HTPC, but I'd like to have a box available in the $200-300 range that the wife and children can use as simply as a DVD player. I can take care of the media server behind the sceens myself. I'm not going to build a $1000 HTPC for each TV in the house...
Ideally, the box would do 100bT (the HP box says it's 10), and I'd like it to run an OS that I get source for, so I can customize it. Oh, and a pony, I'd like a pony.
Seriously though, I'd love to have the proverbial Linux set-top box, with maybe a 5 1/4 bay to accept a DVD drive (that could cost extra, I don't care that much.) The important bits are that it be AV-style casing, be in the $200-300 range, and have flawless, standard NTSC output. Doesn't need to be HDTV yet. Just composite and s-video, maybe component would be nice. Needs an IR input for remote as well. I'm actually willing to put up with the endless software upgrade cycle and small glitches that represent an immature or beta software base. I can upgrade/try other progs as needed.
Anyone know of such a boxen that meets my criteria?
More important than Ogg support IMHO how HP decided not to implement the ZeroConf (apple's rendevous) stanered into this device. For consumers to realyl pick up on this, it needs to be plug and play - the ONLY way that will happen is if you don't have to set up anything.. Rendevous lets that happen. The new Tivo option will preform much better than this do to it's rendevous integration with computers.
*sigh*... maybe in a firmware rev?
I would like more information about this. States have tons of custom and commercial software packages they use for everything from tracking DUI offenders to registering kids in school districts. And those products more likely than not use things like databases and middleware things that are mostly OS-specific.
Forget about Windows and Office for a sec and think about the costs related to moving all that to an "open" platform. Especially today, when most states are flat broke and pulling money away from programs like education and welfare.
Does anyone have any real, specific information as to how Oregon plans to deal with this, outside of the all too familiar "oh, another blow to m$" static I keep hearing?
It seems to me that these are mostly empty gestures. What they should be doing is introducing alternative operating systems and applications selectively, where it makes sense and they represent the best tool for the job at hand. In this scenario, the "you must use [insert software]" is nothing more than an imposition made by the very people who know absolutely nothing about these things (the legislators) to the detriment of the people who will actually burden this (the MIS staffs at the state agencies). And ultimately, to the detriment of the taxpayers as well.
It's a bad Dilbert cartoon - at a massive scale.
I wonder if the video transfer is anamorphic. It says it is 2.35:1 letterboxed, but some people call any video that is wider than 16:9 letterboxed, because it always has horizontal bars, even if the transfer is anamorphic.
Do you actually think that Saddam lets the people choose the government? Hell from the looks of our last election, we barely choose ours. Your reasoning is idiotic.
"There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals."
Sounds cool. Can I just download an ISO of the DVD instead?
region-free
Man, I need sleep. I read that as Rogaine-free.
I'm the urban spaceman babe, but here comes the twist... I don't exist
Have you even read the SB742 link you posted? It's about the DOT making money to do road improvements.
Ahem...ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please...
I now present, for your listening enjoyment, The Free Software Song!!!
I would bet that the strategy is to put a sexy woman there so that the horny soldiers will tell her anything for attention. hell maybe she'll even fuck them if they give her really juicy stuff. did you see the hot looking redhead sex-pot they got covering the guy leading the whole thing I'll bet you ten dollars he's fucking her and thats why they put her there
Someone wanna put this on one of the P2P networks? $15 for a DVD case to ship to CANADA is ludicrous.
-- iCEBaLM
Wow, two free hours of RMS insisting that "it's correctly termed GNU/Linux -- here, read this 85 point manifesto."
It's a nice chunk of change they've picked up, though. Looking at their rates, that's $10,000 each from IBM and HP, and probably $500 each from the others. I wonder if they really got that much out of them or if they offered a discount to get the ball rolling.
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
I worked at EDD in sacramento. and i think gnu would be great there. in california 90% of the real work is done by tn3270 this can easily be done in linux. the major needs are. email, word processor, spreadsheet and presentations for the managers. the main road block would be exchange most big corporations love that program and i don't think that there is a real alternative to it. but I'm sure that that could be worked out.
Star office
X3279 or something like that
Mozilla for a web browser.
although i would set the managers up with Apples. the less they have to thing the better off you are, as a former it person for them i should know.
blah blah blah backing up my discs because I'm afraid they're going to get damaged blah blah *cough*bullshit*cough*
Would you frown on "format-shifting VHS tapes because I'm afraid VHS will go the way of the 8-track after my VCR has died" or "format-shifting VHS tapes because they're notorious for wearing out after a couple dozen plays"?
Many DVD players now will play mp3 files directly, and a number will even play Divx movies directly as well.
Divx 1 movies (Circuit City time-bomb DVD) don't work anymore because the license servers have been taken down. Which set-top player do you recommend for DivX 4+ movies (AVI with MPEG-4 video and MP3 or AC3 audio)?
Will I retire or break 10K?
...of Revolution OS are the bizarre physical mannerisms of RMS and ESR. I enjoyed all their commentary but I had to go home and take a shower to get rid of that creepy feeling.
-- thinkyhead software and media
The State of Oregon is doing such a wonderful job that that community of Sherwood, a town with one of the highest gross income per citizen has the lowest school funding. Roughly $250 less per student then the second least funded school district.
:)
Way to go!
I have to admit though it is funny looking at the school boards saying things like
"School Closed March 21 Due to Lack of Funds"
I think their trying to give us a guild trip
because the Exchange server that my Java applets needed to place orders fucked ittself up so many damn times. (the config files would randomly reset themselves for factory default every week or two)
A big problem with Micro$oft's crap is that it makes those using it look bad, beyond mere embarrasement. I switched my father over to Linux several months ago, and he has never looked back.
You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair.
Forget that, where can I find the Girls Gone Wild feeds?
Drunk grils showing their breasts for 10 cent beads... Now that's a good deal.
Karma: The shiznight, mostly because I am the Drizzle.
I find that INCREDIBLY hard to believe. Not only has my experience been very positive (and I've got really good ears, and equipment to match), but the double-blind tests conducted have said the same.
Are you sure the problem isn't just that you don't like hearing the high-frequencies, or maybe you're just so accustomed to MP3 that you don't like hearing music without the artifacts?
Slashdot gets worse every day... Pipedot: News for nerds, without the corporate slant
It's 34 now.
There are reasons why democracy does not work nearly as well as capitalism.
-- David D. Friedman
The problem starts when people use the title of "Peace Protest" but run more of a "LA Lakers just won the NBA Finals Riot". Blocking freeways, breaking windows, vandalizing personal and private property alike are not actions of people seeking peace. They are actions of criminals who should go to jail for them. And if they hurt someone in the process they should go to jail for a long time. Just like any non "Peace Protestor" would.
Regards,
~Joshua Norton
That's what they WANT you to think, you naive, innocent little man...
If you can wait a while and love Linux, there's even some new SFF boards that have the embedded media players that work seperate from the OS.
have fun!
Washington Declares War on Oregon
Moves capital to Redmond for better naval defenseI'd buy it if I didn't have to use credit card. I refuse to ever get a credit card. I wish they'd except bank transfer.....
You're saying this like it's a bad thing... we've never really trusted those granola-munchers down there in Ory-gun... :-)
(I'm betting if we just cut off their supplies of Birkenstocks and the flow of Starbucks, we can bring 'em to their knees within days)
I use the BroadQ Qcast Tuner on my PS2 serving files off of a FreeBSD machine almost daily. With the Linux Binary Compatability stuff installed, you just install the JRE through the ports collection and it works. Really well, in fact.
When did you last try Ogg? I converted all my stuff to Ogg around RC2 time frame, between RC2 and the final 1.0, they fixed some very noticeable quality problems.
I know a couple of my tracks ran into these problems.
--JoeProgram Intellivision!
I think the DEC had the potential to be a really great product. Seems like it got lost somewhere in the merger... plus, when it was released a couple of years ago it was priced way out of the market. Damn shame.
Vorbis produces *different* artifacts. Personally, I much prefer the degradation of Vorbis to the MP3 artifacts that at times make it sound like drums have been filled with water.
Pretend that something especially witty is here. Thanks.
Is it me or does the icon look like a robed penis?
Why in the world would anyone want to reboot it if it runs Linux ;) ?
The problem is that many protest actions are open to interpretation. Is a protestor standing in front of the public building picking a spot to maximize the attention his message recieves, or because he wants to block entry? Is the man who struggles with a cop trying to defend himself from a potentially violent officer, or trying to make a first strike? It's often all a matter of perception.
To further prove the point, I propose the following experiment.
Record some "protestors". Create two copies of this tape, with their banners and audio edited to suggest the "protestors" espouse both sides of a controversial issue. Show the tapes at random to audiences, and survey them as to the acceptability of the "protestors'" actions.
One gets you fifty that when people agree with the "protestors'" cause, they will consider their actions much less malicious.
It's just like a fascist dictatorship, without the punctual rail service!
Have you thought about how the zebra's friends and family must feel?
Please support the wildlife by sticking to CNN and away from National Geographic!
--
Power to the Peaceful
I personally have submitted three different test samples where a Lame encoded VBR with -extreme was undistinguishable from the source but where a high bitrate ogg was easily picked out. There are definitly some high frequency issues as well as one bass distortion issue present in ogg. I hope that they are able to work these out (they may be already, I submitted several months ago), but to say that ogg is perfect is simply not true.
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
maybe you're just so accustomed to MP3 that you don't like hearing music without the artifacts?
;)
When I first started using Ogg, I kept thinking I was hearing artifacts. But everytime I went back to the original CD I couldn't tell the difference; what I thought was artifacts was actually part of the original uncompressed track.
I think Ogg is almost *too* good.
I find The Guardian to be one of the most unbiased, objective news sources in existance:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/
If you want to get another perspective on the news, Al-Jazeera is the thing for you. It's just as biased as CNN, but it provides a different angle on the news:
http://www.aljazeera.net/
Not mainstream:
http://dearraed.blogspot.com/
SIG: TAKE OFF EVERY 'CAPTAIN'!!
About a year ago i was playing around with diferent linux email systems, they seemed to be hard to set up and they didnt really have a unified paradigm. this would make large scale email hard. although. i guess i should look into this again.
UK TV stations have at least 3 or 4 ladies "embedded" with troops.
US left behind in this respect I guess...
IANAL but write like a drunk one.
Here's a real one.
Oops. My fault. That was a bill from the 2001 legislature... It seems as though the current 742 has died in committee, and thus is no longer available in its original format. Some of the more "conspiracy theory" websites are saying that it is not dead - but consider the source. At least for now, it has died. It doesn't mean the Oregon Legislature won't do stupid stuff soon though, they are quite good at it. It was kind of funny and ironci that SB742 was sponsored by a guy named "Mennis". ;)
Hey, pal, Starbucks was originally a Washington thing... You sent 'em here, we didn't ask for them!
And some non-embedded ones, like the ones in Baghdad.
1234
I really have no problem with peaceful protesting as a way for people to express their opions. I doubt many people would consider blocking freeway onramps and breaking car windows out a peaceful protest though. Rgardless of the subject matter on the signs.
Regards,
~Joshua Norton