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Intel Branding Media Center PCs as "Viiv"

ChessKnught writes "Dan Ackerman posted a blog on Blog.CNET.com regarding Intel Developer Forum chatter about Intel's branding of it's Media Center PC. Don McDonald, one of Intel's Digital Home Group Sr. VP's, is talking about 'Viiv', apparently targetting entertainment PC users. It looks like it'll be combining CPU, Intel hardware (TV tuner, remote, and easy setup wireless home networking, etc.) and Windows Media Center Edition."

152 of 202 comments (clear)

  1. "Viiv"? by JanneM · · Score: 5, Funny

    So some Intel executive's "niece" got to play in marketing for a week, it seems.

    --
    Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
    1. Re:"Viiv"? by crazyphilman · · Score: 2, Funny

      No, it's Vivian from the Young Ones. The new Intel logo is going to be four silver stars stapled to a geek's forehead.

      --
      Farewell! It's been a fine buncha years!
    2. Re:"Viiv"? by Filip22012005 · · Score: 1

      I read that as 53...

      --
      When the policeman of the tie, rule you violate, hello punishment of the kitty?
    3. Re:"Viiv"? by Filip22012005 · · Score: 1

      or 8, maybe.

      possibly -2 even.

      --
      When the policeman of the tie, rule you violate, hello punishment of the kitty?
    4. Re:"Viiv"? by Gleng · · Score: 1

      "Using this computer requires a very special blend of psychology, and extreme violence."

      --
      "Proudly Posting Without Reading The Article"
    5. Re:"Viiv"? by crazyphilman · · Score: 1

      ...And if the computer discovers that you are doing something less than brilliant, it will scream "YOU DAFT HIPPIE" in a heavy English accent.

      It's not a bug, it's a feature!

      --
      Farewell! It's been a fine buncha years!
  2. am i the only one by AKAJack · · Score: 5, Interesting

    who thinks "viiv" means "64"?

    1. Re:am i the only one by Bloodrage · · Score: 1
      --
      i am endorsed for the carrying of dangerous goods, please be giving me your depleted uranium
    2. Re:am i the only one by ninjakoala · · Score: 1

      Ooooh. I was waiting for a new Web.it-like machine. Can't wait to play those C=64 games in glorious high resolution. Scaled of course.

      --
      Against the grain
    3. Re:am i the only one by Tackhead · · Score: 2, Funny
      > who thinks "viiv" means "64"?

      Because "VIIV0K oportet suppeto" is easier to pronounce than "DCXLK".

      Because there are no "bars over characters" in ASCII, and because redundancy filter won't let me type in the other representation for the quantity you get when you multiply DCXL by MXXIV.

      And because even if the derivation would get past the filter, there is no. freaking. way. I'm going to try and multiply those two quantities in Roman numerals. Nuh-uh. If they want more than that much RAM, the Linigoths can have the Empire.

    4. Re:am i the only one by guard952 · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't that be LXIV

    5. Re:am i the only one by shokk · · Score: 1

      Yes! In all of the world you were the only one! Thank the stars you have pointed this out for us! Whew, that was close! We almost missed it. 25 years from now people will be thankful that you were here to catch that one. Wow!!

      --
      "Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart, he dreams himself your master."
    6. Re:am i the only one by Brandon+K · · Score: 1

      Sounds reasonable. It would be interpereted as 'VI' then 'IV', for you slow folks out there who can't stray from the rules a bit.

    7. Re:am i the only one by nghate · · Score: 1

      Viiv... its supposed to be similar to Five (5)...

    8. Re:am i the only one by Afrosheen · · Score: 1

      So, according to an earlier post, VI then IV is interpreted properly as the same number, which is 6 6.

        I imagine for the upgrade they'll be selling the VIIVIV or the IVIVIV or even the VIIVVI.

        666 for the slow ones out there.

    9. Re:am i the only one by jimi+the+hippie · · Score: 1

      No, "LXIV" means "64"

  3. Once again .... by AdamReyher · · Score: 1

    ... Intel tries to impress us with their labeling. Will this be a known name 15 years from now, or will it fall into anchient history in the near future?

    --
    The Computations of AdamR
    http://www.adamreyher.com
  4. I realize that.. by jvagner · · Score: 5, Funny

    ..technology branding is hard, but .. sheesh, isn't it time Intel fired their marketing division?

    VIIV? Viiv? It's like a new STD.

    1. Re:I realize that.. by XFilesFMDS1013 · · Score: 1

      STD...running Windows MCE...I get it.

    2. Re:I realize that.. by corngrower · · Score: 1

      Actually, when you look at the logo, it looks more like V\\V. WTF is that?

  5. Yet another product they'll can in 6 months by dangermen · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This is YET another product they'll can in 6 months. I use to work for an Intel dealer. It has always been funny watching Intel try to get into markets only to dump product six months later. Let's see: high end switches, SSL accelerators, ISDN routers, NAS appliances, multi-media centers, crap video conferencing, and a whole slew of others.

    Intel -NEEDS- to figure out that they really should only do Network Cards, CPUs, and motherboard chipsets. It could be argued that they are even slipping on the latter two.

    Either way, I recommend people stay away from them. You'll just be buying something from someone else.

    1. Re:Yet another product they'll can in 6 months by Grishnakh · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Don't forget crappy digital cameras, crappy digital microscopes, crappy portable music players, and crappy wireless keyboards and mice.

      The thing is, many of these "initiatives" are actually where they went out and bought some other company. So they buy another company, thinking they're going to integrate them into their line-up and use that to increase their overall strength and presence in the market, and they put out a few products. But somehow they screw it all up so all the engineers from the acquired company quit and/or the customers desert them, and then they have to sh!tcan the whole thing.

      Intel does make some pretty good network cards though.

  6. Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by Rude+Turnip · · Score: 5, Interesting

    And they are: Cable Card. If anyone who wants a serious HTPC is willing to spend the bucks on the gear, then they'll likely be the type of person who wants premium channels and possibly on-demand programming. For a device like those Intel propose with the ViiV chipset, a video-in connection and IR blasters to control the cable box would be unacceptable...the Viiv unit must *be* the cable box and the Cable Card specification allows that. Tivo, for instance, is coming out with a CableCard unit next year that will allow me to get rid of my cable box. With the cable card from my cable company, my HTPC will be able to decode all the premium and HD programming *itself*.

    1. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by Anita+Coney · · Score: 1

      Yeah, IF you can get your cable company to provide such a card. Gook luck trying.

      --
      If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.
    2. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by djohnsto · · Score: 3, Informative

      All cable companies offering digital cable MUST offer cable cards as of July 1st, 2004. This was by FCC mandate. They don't advertise it, but if your cable company offers digital cable and won't give you a cable card if you ask, report them to the FCC.

      --
      Dan
    3. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by interiot · · Score: 1

      But the FCC doesn't mandate anything regarding satellite TV, right? eg. the only way to go for people who want top-quality is the illegal route?

    4. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by doormat · · Score: 2, Funny

      Shuttle already has a working cablecard implementation, they showed it off at Computex. Its chances of getting licensed by CableLabs to hook directly to a computer are about the same as my chance of getting laid anytime soon.

      --
      The Doormat

      If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
    5. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by UndyingShadow · · Score: 1

      That sounds totally awesome, but I hate to tell you...It'll never happen. The media industry will fight you tooth and nail, they dont want any of "their" content near a PC.

    6. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by Wesley+Felter · · Score: 1

      Microsoft has a plan for getting CableCard to work with WIndows, but I agree with doormat that CableLabs and its conspirators Motorola and Scientific Atlanta will be very reluctant to let it happen.

    7. Re:Only 2 words count that I didn't see in TFA by Anita+Coney · · Score: 1

      Cable companies are also required to offer programming ala carte, i.e., we're not required to take their forced packages. But they don't. Cable companies are to required to provide firewire capable boxes when requested. They don't.

      The problem is that the FCC has to enforce such violations, but the FCC simply doesn't care. If you can get the FCC to force your cable company to follow the law. That's great. Unfortunately, the rest of us are not that lucky.

      --
      If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.
  7. From the article... by Nos. · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Aimed at entertainment PC users--particularly those who use rack-style home theater systems

    Is this a particularaly large market? I'm not a big audiophile, and don't have a huge plasma HD TV. I know some people who do. In all the stores I've been in, I've never seen rack-style home theatre equipment. Now, I'm not in the high end stores, but lets face it, if the big box stores aren't carrying it, there's not a big market for it.

    So, if most satellite and other TV providers already have PVRs and some have similar functionality (networkable, can play music, etc), where is the market for this? Is this going to be a high priced toy for those that can afford it?

    Of course, there is the possibility that they meant component style, which probably covers a pretty big majority of people who would be interested in something like this.

    1. Re:From the article... by callipygian-showsyst · · Score: 3, Insightful
      and don't have a huge plasma HD TV

      That's OK! Real videophiles tend to use HD Front Projections (anything from the 720P Sharp 12000s to true 1080i/p Sony Qualias). If a Videophile were to have a plasma it would be a "spare" that's on the wall visible when the screen is up, for bright ambient light viewing.

      Plasmas run hot, and have a severe burn-in problem. For that reason, people in-the-know avoid them.

    2. Re:From the article... by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      Also, don't plasmas lose their brightness very quickly, so that they're pretty much worthless in a few years?

    3. Re:From the article... by InvalidError · · Score: 1

      This is what they call burn-in.

      When plasma displays warm up, their materials expand. When they cool, they contract. This gradually weakens the seal between cells and lets the gases leak out.

      I wonder how well the first generation of large commercial OLED displays will fare compared to current plasmas.

    4. Re:From the article... by mgoff · · Score: 1

      You are uninformed and/or prejudiced against plasmas.

      Plasmas run hot, and have a severe burn-in problem.

      Really? Are you saying a projector runs cooler than a plasma with identical display area? Are there any fanless projectors? There are lots of fanless plasmas.

      Modern plasmas (i.e. ones made in the past few years) do not have burn-in problems. Temporary image retention (as long as a few hours in extreme cases) can still occur if an owner is careless and leaves a high-contrast, static image on for a few hours. Phosphor halflife is now approximately that of a standard CRT, meaning the lifetimes are similar.

      For that reason, people in-the-know avoid them.

      Oh please. Go spend some time getting informed over at AVSForum.com. A true videophile will acknowledge that FP and plasma both have a place in a serious home theater setup. But, if you can only pick one, you'd be crazy to go with the FP-- unless you have blackout curtains you can draw every time you want to watch TV.

  8. No it's 75 by goombah99 · · Score: 1

    VII V = 75

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:No it's 75 by ciroknight · · Score: 3, Insightful

      And VI IV is 64.

      And V IIV is 57.

      Who cares what it stands for. It's a retarded name, and hopefully it's just a codename. If they actually do use this ridiculus name, they're gonna have to highlight the letters so people know what Intel's smoking.

      --
      "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
    2. Re:No it's 75 by ciroknight · · Score: 1

      Whoopse, I hit submit before I realized it. V IIV is technically 53, even though three is usually expressed as III in Roman Numerals.

      --
      "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
    3. Re:No it's 75 by GregChant · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Whoopse, I hit submit before I realized it. V IIV is technically 53, even though three is usually expressed as III in Roman Numerals.

      Actually, you were right the first time Roman numerals, traditionally, were not directionally dependent. That is why on clocks, you see IIII instead of IV: IV is 6 in Roman.

      Some jackass decided to ruin that simplicity recently (last couple hundred years, maybe?), and thus IV is 4.

    4. Re:No it's 75 by It+doesn't+come+easy · · Score: 2, Funny

      Heh, I think it's the default pin used by the development engineers for the built-in DRM chip ...

      5 1 1 5 ...

      --
      The NSA: The only part of the US government that actually listens.
    5. Re:No it's 75 by superpulpsicle · · Score: 2, Funny

      Bestbuy employee: Good day sir!

      Customer: Hi, Do you know where I can find the VIIV.

      Bestbuy employee: Yes sir, just go down the hall, take a left. The bathroom is right around the corner.

    6. Re:No it's 75 by jrockway · · Score: 1

      You have obviously never been to Best Buy:

      Best Buy Employee: Would you like to get an extended service plan?
      Customer: Uh... what? Where can I get a gift card?
      Employee: Right over here. We have a special deal today. If you buy an extended service plan on the gift card, we'll automatically deduct the entire balance of the card from the card, just to make it useless but at the same time, sound like a good deal. If I use the word "good" enough and keep talking about extended service plans, your wallet will fall out of your pants and Best Buy will win! Yeah!

      This is why I order things online. And any store that calls a bunch of high school students that charge $1000 to format a hard drive the "geek squad" is not worthy of anyone's business.

      (Actually, I won a gift card once... but there was nothing in the store worth spending even fake money on. Isn't that kind of depressing!?)

      --
      My other car is first.
    7. Re:No it's 75 by Prophet+of+Nixon · · Score: 1

      I dunno, Sony's crappy computers are called VAIO, and they seem to sell OK, despite a retarded name, proprietary software, and poor quality.

    8. Re:No it's 75 by kelnos · · Score: 1
      It's a retarded name, and hopefully it's just a codename.
      Nope, Viiv is the real name. The code name was East Fork.
      --
      Xfce: Lighter than some, heavier than others. Just right.
    9. Re:No it's 75 by Ph33r+th3+g(O)at · · Score: 1

      Cool -- ran across this thread in m2 and learned something today. Didn't know why IIII. Wonder why not VIIII rather than IX, though. Do you mean that to the Romans, IX would have been 11?

      --
      I too have felt the cold finger of injustice.
  9. Oh, great, another religious war by TechnoInfidel · · Score: 5, Funny

    Just waiting for someone to complain about it not being called Emacsscame.

    1. Re:Oh, great, another religious war by game+kid · · Score: 1

      Or Edde. Or Joeeoj. Or Picoocip.

      Or Notepaddapeton. Or Worddrow Wilson.

      I really weep, though, for the Google fans who may still hold out hope for Scratchpaddaphctarcs. It's quite a mouthful anyway.

      --
      You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
  10. Oh great by ZorbaTHut · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Hi! I'd like to buy a new computer! What can you recommend?"

    "Well, right over here we've got a state-of-the-art Sony Vaio."

    "Vae . . . via . . . veiaou?"

    "Vaio."

    "Viiu?"

    "Vaio."

    "Um. Well, one of my friends has a media center, and I was thinking of getting one of those too. What can you recommend?"

    "Here's a Viiv!"

    "Veev? Viv?"

    "Viiv."

    "You know what? I don't appreciate being made fun of."

    "Wait! Don't go! I'm serious!"

    --
    Breaking Into the Industry - A development log about starting a game studio.
    1. Re:Oh great by forkazoo · · Score: 3, Funny

      "Where do you keep the computers I can plug into my TV?"

      "In the Viiv-section."

      "The vivisection?!?!"

    2. Re:Oh great by smittyoneeach · · Score: 1

      "Well, we had them in the 'emacsscame' section, but all of the pizza-faced teenagers thought it was an acne cure, so we had to come up with something shorter."

      --
      Get thee glass eyes, and, like a scurvy politician, seem to see things thou dost not.--King Lear
    3. Re:Oh great by panaceaa · · Score: 1

      "Listen, I just want to hook up my Sony Wega to a computer!%@$!"

      "Vega???"

      "Vvega$!$!@$"

  11. This is related to a previous article... by njfuzzy · · Score: 3, Insightful
    --
    My Photography - http://ian-x.com
    The Deathlings (comic) - http://thedeathlings.com
  12. So long as its not a trend by pegasustonans · · Score: 5, Funny

    This is alright so long as Intel doesn't continue naming chips with random comic book sound effects.

    Pretty soon they'd be resorting to names like "Skwoosh" and "Zlurphpt."

    --
    And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. --Will
    1. Re:So long as its not a trend by pegasustonans · · Score: 1

      Correction: change "chips" to "systems" in my comment above.

      --
      And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. --Will
  13. This is of course... by slapout · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...part of their marketing agreement with Microsoft. The one in which both companies are suppose to use names that have no meaning whatsoever to the general consumer. (Run Vista on your Viiv?)

    (Well, it's either that, or they've got a side bet about who can come up with the worst name...)

    --
    Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
    1. Re:This is of course... by twelveinchbrain · · Score: 1

      The one in which both companies are suppose to use names that have no meaning whatsoever to the general consumer. (Run Vista on your Viiv?)

      I really hope English isn't your first language, because "vista" is a real word.

      --
      Not Found
      The requested URL /signature.html was not found on this server.
    2. Re:This is of course... by slapout · · Score: 1

      I know it's a real word. My point was (and maybe I wasn't clear) is that neither word is related to computers.

      --
      Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
  14. Or it's from the Chicago song. by goombah99 · · Score: 5, Funny

    take all overlapping pairs of consecutive digits:

    VI II IV

    that's 6 2 4 or in leet speak: "six to four"

    Now if you assume the two II in the middle were crossed for multiplication then that's 5x5 = 25

    Hence we arrive at the Chicago song:

    Twenty Five or Six to four

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by hkroger · · Score: 1

      Jesus christ, what do you do all day long???

    2. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by seanmeister · · Score: 5, Funny

      ... and in the film Footloose, Chicago is where Kevin Bacon's character moved from.

      KEVIN BACON - I WIN!!!

    3. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by Overzeetop · · Score: 1

      Oh, man, this has gone way too far. *head in hands*

      --
      Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
    4. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by themoodykid · · Score: 1

      He's a numerologist.

    5. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by chrish · · Score: 1

      You win at the Internet... well done!

      --
      - chrish
    6. Re:Or it's from the Chicago song. by seanmeister · · Score: 1

      yeah... the guy at the end was tough to beat ;)

  15. Third choice. by bombshelter13 · · Score: 4, Funny

    So, when presented with the options of choosing a name for their new product that is either A) meaningless but pronouncable and fairly easy to remember phonetically (i.e. Centrinu, Celeron) or B) actually has some vague correlation to what the technology is about (HyperThreading, EM64T), they choose to do neither, settling on one that is neither catchy nor related to what the product actually does.
     
    Nice job, boys.

    1. Re:Third choice. by VoidWraith · · Score: 1

      Celeron is almost certainly related to the Latin stem having to do with speed: Celer. That makes perfect sense from a marketing perspective, look, its fast (but doesn't crunch as well... we'll gloss that over). Centrino I couldn't tell you, but almost certainly stems in something. Pentium, for those who didn't know, comes from Latin 5, since it followed the 486. Why the Pentium 3 wasn't the Septium is beyond me, I think that sounds catchier =P

    2. Re:Third choice. by DeafByBeheading · · Score: 1

      If they were going for catchy, they should've called the Pentium II the Sexium...

      --
      Telltale Games: Bone, Sam and Max
    3. Re:Third choice. by Halfbaked+Plan · · Score: 1

      Pentium III would have been the Octium, since the Pentium Pro was the Hexium.

      --
      resigned
    4. Re:Third choice. by Nefarious+Wheel · · Score: 1

      And of course they couldn't have called it the 586, because they added 100 to 486 and got 585.99912134 which marketing couldn't brand.

      --
      Do not mock my vision of impractical footwear
  16. Ah yes, "Viiv" by mcc · · Score: 4, Funny

    The brilliant name devised by Intel's Committee To Come Up With A Name Dumber Than "Itanium".

    1. Re:Ah yes, "Viiv" by zippthorne · · Score: 1

      Ah, I see operation name things with overly descriptive names is a success!

      --
      Can you be Even More Awesome?!
  17. More articles here.... by Hack+Jandy · · Score: 2, Informative
  18. upgrading.. by Keruo · · Score: 1

    is this really suitable naming scheme?
    add one, and you get:
      Intel Inside VIIVI

    --
    There are no atheists when recovering from tape backup.
  19. Just call it what it is by ThatGeek · · Score: 1

    What's with the need to come up with complex names that don't describe the product? Why not call it an "Intel Entertainment Center" or "Intel Home Theater"?

    How many geeks are going to be able to explain to their spouses why they need to shell out lots of hard earned money for a "viiv"?

    --
    What are you eating? isItVeg?.
  20. Re:Worst Name by YuriGherkin · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Maybe it's the worst but it's not the dumbest like Vista is ...

    At least doing a Google search for Viiv will probably get you what you want instead of doing a google search for Vista. Let's see ...

    Currently a Google search for Viiv returns the Intel product as the top result while a Google search for vista returns, um, AmeriCorps ... #@*^#!*9 wtf?

    From a customer point of view, Viiv is a good choice.

  21. Viiv by CSHARP123 · · Score: 1
    It looks like it'll be combining CPU, Intel hardware (TV tuner, remote, and easy setup wireless home networking, etc.) and Windows Media Center Edition.

    Why just Windows media center? When they can use Myth TV on Linux. Lot of you already know, mythtv has better features than Media center. With a corporation behind it, it can become much better.

    1. Re:Viiv by GaryPatterson · · Score: 2, Insightful

      These days it's all about controlling content once it leaves your servers.

      I don't know MythTV well, but I'll hazard a guess that it's not big on DRM. If that's the case, then Windows Media Centre will always have better corporate backing.

      I actually think Sun's push for an 'open' DRM scheme will help, but then I'm evil like that.

    2. Re:Viiv by rogabean · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Don't get me wrong... I love my MythTV box, but in terms of features Windows Media Center has it beat in a lot of areas. MythTV on the other hand is far better in the actual TV dept.

      And the real closer on this is Windows Media Center is bound to have a higher overall WAF (Wife Approval Factor), luckily the other half is a geek so this wasn't an issue for me.

      Add in that the top content companies are all about DRM... MythTV wasn't happening on ViiV.

      --
      "why don't you just slip into something more comfortable...like a coma!"
    3. Re:Viiv by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      Because a lot of people at Intel can't fathom the idea of a computer without Windows on it. Also, Intel believes very strongly in the whole "trusted computing" thing, and probably wants to kowtow to the media companies.

    4. Re:Viiv by saintlupus · · Score: 1

      And the real closer on this is Windows Media Center is bound to have a higher overall WAF (Wife Approval Factor), luckily the other half is a geek so this wasn't an issue for me.

      1) Put the computer inside of the entertainment center, where the wife can't see the case or hear the fans.

      2) Buy an ATI Remote Wonder. Program an appropriate xmodmap for Myth. I can send you mine, if you like.

      3) Run the cord for the ATI receiver up the back of the unit and put it near the TV.

      WAF. Solved.

      Well, it worked for me, anyway.

      --saint

    5. Re:Viiv by rogabean · · Score: 1

      1. check
      2. use the hauppauge remote.. works great
      3. check

      my WAF approval is high. It was a general observation.

      Although I will admit I can be a bit jealous of a few of MCE's features myself now and then. Online Spotlight is nice.

      MythTV: functional
      MCE: polished

      Hands down functional wins for me, but not everyone feels that way.

      --
      "why don't you just slip into something more comfortable...like a coma!"
    6. Re:Viiv by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      Yes, I know many people at Intel use Linux at work, and at home too. But it's most definitely a small minority. The IT department is very much centered on Windows (but not the engineering computing which is mostly unix, but they're much smaller than the main IT dept). The management doesn't know or care that much for Linux though.

      As for your "who's the customer going to call" argument, it's pretty silly. Intel isn't going to sell Intel-branded Viiv machines, any more than they sell Intel Centrino laptops. They're going to provide "Viiv" as a component to system builders like HP and Dell, who will then sell complete systems to end-users. Who are the users going to turn to? The brand name on their machine: Dell, HP, etc.

      Customer Acceptance: I guess TiVo is really hurting because it doesn't use Windows, right? No, I guess not. The overall product is what's important to consumers, not what OS it uses internally (which shouldn't be obvious anyway on a media center computer--if you have to use a mouse and open and close windows on a media center computer, it's seriously flawed).

      Why MythTV or any other open-source product? Simple: control. By choosing only Windows MCE, they've shackled themselves to Microsoft. If they want something to be done differently, too bad; they only get the OS and software the way MS wants it. Perhaps they'd like a new feature; it'll only happen if MS wants to play along. With open-source software, Intel could implement this product any way they wish. Furthermore, their downstream partners (Dell, HP, etc. who build and sell the final boxes) could make their own changes to differentiate their products. As someone who is currently working with a product like this, this is extremely attractive to customers. What's more, they don't have to have all the Microsoft branding and logos all over. If I were Dell, why would I be interested in building an Intel Viiv system if it's going to look and function exactly like HP's version? And why would I want it to be filled with Microsoft branding, when I could have my own Dell branding there instead? I'd rather have a software product from Intel that I'm able to customize for my own needs and my particular hardware implementation, and ship that to customers.

      The biggest problem with MythTV/Linux is that it doesn't support DRM. Entertainment companies don't like that, and it seems that Intel wants to pander to them, or maybe they think this box will be some sort of gateway to pay-per-view streamed DRMed content, instead of a glorified TiVo.

  22. The next Centrino by wiredlogic · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This is another ploy by their marketing department to lock out their chipset competitors. Notably Via. This will be the same for the A/V market.

    By marketing the "Centrino" brand instead of "Pentium M" thay created demand among the clueless public and ensured vendor lock-in for their chipsets than would not otherwise be the case. The consumer doesn't know that a Pentium M is but they do know that their next notebook has got to be a "Centrino" because of blitz advertising. The notebook manufacturers have no choice but to design in more Intel parts if they want to meet "demand".

    This also helped in the demise of Transmeta even though the Efficeon had real promise. The Sharp Muramasa is the only Efficeon notebook to date and is only available through importers in the US.

    --
    I am becoming gerund, destroyer of verbs.
    1. Re:The next Centrino by wfberg · · Score: 1

      Which brand of laptop do you think people buy? "Centrino"? Or "Dell"? Even "Centrino" is too much under-the-hood. Too most people, if centrino means anything at all, it just means "wireless network".

      At the moment, the only mediacenter brand with any clout in the market is the Windows XP MediaCenter Edition brand (in fact, before MCE, did you call it a mediacenter? Or a pc-with-tuner-and-encoder-decoder? Or a PVR/PVR-PC? Microsoft marketing now ensures slashdot headlines with "Media Center" rather than any of those descriptive terms).

      So, intel spending bucks on branding in the media center arena is only a counterweight to microsoft branding. In the end people will be faced with the choice between different OEM vendors anyway; Dell, Apple (some day soon now, surely), HP, and somethingelse (e.g. Walmart/Medion/white-label, some linuxy thingamajig, Kiss/Cisco). something like "VIIV" will only mean something to some nerdy types, who will use it as a benchmark ("you should get one with a VIIV chipset or something better inside, like a pinnacle pvrdrr234512").

      --
      SCO employee? Check out the bounty
    2. Re:The next Centrino by milimetric · · Score: 1

      okay, I hate that argument. The Transmetta was a shitty chip. It ran at 1.0 Ghz tops and on a tiny little 10 inch laptop could only dish out like 3 hours of battery life. I can get 5 hours on my 15.4 inch dell with a 1.8 Ghz Pentium M that kicks the shit out of the Transmetta in any benchmark. Why are people still talking about the Transmetta? It died? GOOD. It was SHITTY. The Pentium M is an awesome chip and maybe it can be improved upon but that advertisement that you bash has led a revolution in the computer industry with people caring about low powered chips and buying notebooks and advancements in battery life and small hard drives, portable devices, etc.

  23. why not... by abes · · Score: 1

    add a couple features, perhaps a family movie or two, and call it the Aristrocrats?

    No, I won't expand on what I mean.

  24. DRM by Vorondil28 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It looks like it'll be combining CPU, Intel hardware (TV tuner, remote, and easy setup wireless home networking, etc.) and Windows Media Center Edition."

    Not to mention DRM'd to hell?

    --
    This sig rocks the casbah.
    1. Re:DRM by quentin_quayle · · Score: 1

      Vorondil28: "Not to mention DRM'd to hell?"

      Affirmative.

      This is what was formerly (or internally, whatever) called "East Fork". The Inquirer explained how everything that goes thru it gets converted to Windows Media with DRM.

      So you're better off building your own - except some new-generation discs won't play, or will get downgraded, in anything that lacks this sort of anti-user tech.

    2. Re:DRM by plasmacutter · · Score: 1

      I really wish they WOULD come up with unbreakable DRM just to piss the public off. Sure everyone would suffer for a few years, but it would end up eventually with proper alleviation from capital hill.

      That said.. would such a system not immediately prompt a thorough and proper crack of windows media DRM?

      --
      VLC FOR MAC IS DYING! IF YOU DEVELOP, PLEASE SAVE IT!!
  25. Speaking of brilliant names... by Kozar_The_Malignant · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Maybe it will run "Bob".

    --
    Some mornings it's hardly worth chewing through the restraints to get out of bed.
  26. I guess it's pronounced like Vive... by danielDamage · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Which sounds a little painful to my ears. For instance, to use it in a sentence: "Can we re-viiv our ailing business model?"

    --
    Slices, dices, eats your lunch.
  27. I think the world needs by iminplaya · · Score: 1

    a Geneva Naming Convention. We must put an end to these atrocities. Viiv...Good grief!

    --
    What?
  28. Re:Worst Name by YuriGherkin · · Score: 1
    you added "windows" to the search term *cough*moron*cough*

    http://www.google.com/search?q=vista

  29. It's probably just a typo.... by Caspian · · Score: 1

    ...and they actually named it vivi.

    --
    With spending like this, exactly what are "conservatives" conserving?
  30. sounds like a DRM match made in hell by enrico_suave · · Score: 1

    intel's trusted computing meets MCE 2005's DRM'd media files.

    --
    Build Your Own PVR/HTPC news, reviews, &
  31. My GOD! by Bobzibub · · Score: 1

    Could this indeed be true?

  32. Re:Worst Name by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    You don't say? Maybe because that's the name of the product? And that's also what people will search for if Vista isn't the number one result when it's finally released - which it probably will be by the way.

    Conclusions: You're an idiot.

  33. That would be LXIV by RatBastard · · Score: 1

    Crap here for the empty reply filter.

    --
    Boobies never hurt anyone. - Sherry Glaser.
  34. It is pronounced... by Poromenos1 · · Score: 3, Informative

    "vive", as in "five".

    --
    Send email from the afterlife! Write your e-will at Dead Man's Switch.
    1. Re:It is pronounced... by JohnsonWax · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So why the fuck isn't it spelled 'vive'.

      Naming products things that consumers feel self-conscious trying to pronounce correctly tends to cause them to a) not talk about them, b) come up with some other name for your product that you have no control over.

    2. Re:It is pronounced... by pglee · · Score: 1

      that might cause a problem for francophones/francophiles

  35. Is it just me by melted · · Score: 1

    Or somebody else's brain subconsciously associates "VIIV" with virii?

    1. Re:Is it just me by Taladar · · Score: 1

      I associate it more with HIV. So VIIV would be the vi Immunodeficiency Virus. I guess the vi users will have to use emacs too if Intel manages to make this a success.

    2. Re:Is it just me by Jerf · · Score: 1

      No, I got the same out of it.

      I think they were going for the "vivere" root, life, involved in words like "vivacious" and "vitality", but given the computer connections "virus" does tend to come out too.

      Trying to peice together syllables to indirectly invoke things is a dangerous game. (Doesn't seem to stop a lot of big companies, though.)

  36. Re:Ding ding ding ding! by shokk · · Score: 1

    I don't get it. How could the FP to mention the bad editorial work on Slashdot be redundant?

    --
    "Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart, he dreams himself your master."
  37. Re:Ding ding ding ding! by Wavicle · · Score: 5, Funny

    How could the FP to mention the bad editorial work on Slashdot be redundant?

    You must be new here...

    --
    Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.
    Edward Everett (1794 - 1865)
  38. thank god by earlums25 · · Score: 1

    thank god, now i'll have something to use with my xbox 360!!

  39. V//V is Verify on both ends of the content stream. by pallmall1 · · Score: 1

    Verifiy at the source, stream to end hardware as symbolized by the double slash -- //, and then Verifiy again at the user's hardware.

    This way, they can double-Vuck you.

    --
    3 things about computers: they're alive, they're self-aware, and they hate your guts.
  40. Trademarks? by Saeed+al-Sahaf · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I think that the marketing gurus are just running out of names that are not trademarked. It's the same with drugs and software. Soon, things will have to be named random strings so as not to conflick with some existing trademark.

    --
    "Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
    1. Re:Trademarks? by WinterSolstice · · Score: 1

      Wow! My %43@#0=_W223qk@34a!A ver 2.0 is SO much cooler than yours!

      -WS

      --
      An operating system should be like a light switch... simple, effective, easy to use, and designed for everyone.
    2. Re:Trademarks? by crazyphilman · · Score: 1

      uhhhhh..... FARM FRESH MILK!

      Have you been receiving empty packages?

      FARM FRESH! AAAAGH... MILK! FARMFRESHMILK!

      --
      Farewell! It's been a fine buncha years!
    3. Re:Trademarks? by wasted+time · · Score: 1

      Dear Saeed al-Sahaf,

      It has been brought to our attention that you have made personal gains, in the form of mod points, through the use of the word "conflick." We are writing you today to inform you that the word "conflick" is a registered trademark of Prison Porn Productions Company, a subsidiary of Prison Films Inc. Under current US trademark laws, we reserve all rights to the use of the word "conflick" and hereby request that you cease using our trademark in public and in private. Failure to cease infringing on our trademark may lead to civil and/or criminal prosecution with penalties resulting in fines and/or "receiving" roles in one of our films.

      We hope that you understand our "position" in this matter and will thus cease infringement immediately. Rest assured that we have individuals standing at attention who are anxious to see this through your end.

      Ben Dover
      PPPC/PFI

      --
      The Stone Age did not end because humans ran out of stones. - William McDonough
    4. Re:Trademarks? by ncc74656 · · Score: 1
      Wow! My %43@#0=_W223qk@34a!A ver 2.0 is SO much cooler than yours!

      That's %43@#0=_W223qk@34a!A® to you, not %43@#0=_W223qk@34a!A. Thanks for your attention.

      Wile E. Coyote III
      Sr. VP of Plungers and Duct Tape
      Acme Widget Co., Inc.
      Makers of the %43@#0=_W223qk@34a!A® and other fine products for capturing high-velocity highway-running avians

      --
      20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
  41. Re:Ding ding ding ding! by richdun · · Score: 1

    Geez, someone mod parent Redundant... great-grandparent already mentioned the "bad editorial work".

  42. Incest couple - Intel & Microsoft by zymano · · Score: 1

    Can either of these guys make anything without the others help ?

  43. Ahh ... I was looking for this link by A+nonymous+Coward · · Score: 1

    I knew they had registered VIIV before and everyone was speculating on what it meant. Glad you found it for me!

    1. Re:Ahh ... I was looking for this link by Taladar · · Score: 1

      You know if you look at it in all uppercase like that it looks a lot like HIV.

  44. Microsoft dependency... by vhogemann · · Score: 1

    Why depend on Microsoft to power products like this? As good as the hardware may be, if Intel don't control the OS, they don't control the final product.

    Wouldn't make more sense to power it with MithTV, wich they can hack as they please and brand as a Intel only product?

    Why depend on Microsoft? Hell, what's wrong with you Intel, Microsoft used to depend on you!

    --
    ---- You know how some doctors have the Messiah complex - they need to save the world? You've got the "Rubik's" complex
  45. Re:Worst Name by YuriGherkin · · Score: 1

    I see through your ruse Mr Gates and it won't work. You're not welcome here and take your stinking OS with you.

    Go home! Run along! Shoo!

  46. At last, a product named after... by podperson · · Score: 1

    Vyvyan from The Young Ones

  47. It will still suck. by Scott+Byer · · Score: 1
    It will still not do 1080i out easily (yes, I've made mine - not easy).

    It will still come with a crappy remote (has anybody seen a decent MCE remote?).

    It will still likely have cooling problems (have you seen what HP's Dec z540 spacing requirements are? I don't have a room for it to live by itself in - it'll go in with the other stack components, which can all deal with being in a well-ventilated but close-quarters cabinet).

    But, most of all, while the hardware has shortcomings, it's the software that's a complete disaster. I shouldn't have to buy a 3rd party DVD software player just to get decent upsampling (or decent performance at all for that matter). A 10 foot interface should be more complete - I shouldn't have to pull out the keyboard and squint every time the stupid system forgets to keep outputting 5.1 or set some other necessary preference. I shouldn't have to do BIOS updates and 3 driver updates just to record TV to DVD (still doesn't work). The system shouldn't wake itself up 5 minutes after being put in standby every time. It shouldn't have come with the typical load of HP shovelware - bad virus scanner, other junk.

    Intel can call it what they like, but the part that really needs to be fixed isn't under their control.

    --
    > cat ~/.signature | grep -v bullshit

    >

  48. More like Vyv, from The Young Ones by cblguy · · Score: 1

    I keep thinking of Vyvyan from The Young Ones. Anarcharic and a bit nuts. :-) And he developed the magic cure... for those people who aren't axe weilding homicidal maniacs...

  49. Re:What's a "virii"? by swordgeek · · Score: 2, Funny

    Dammit, wish I still had some moderator points to give out.

    "virii" bugs the shit out of me. Linguistic inexactitude at its worst.

    --

    "People who do stupid things with hazardous materials often die." -- Jim Davidson on alt.folklore.urban
  50. Why it won't suck! by swordgeek · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Well actually, it will suck. But only for the first three years. Here's what I predict:

    1) Intel sleeps with MS to develop a HTPC standard. They take over the market.
    2) Everyone else tries to get in on the action. Lawsuits abound.
    3) Other, genuinely better alternatives will become available, some of them open-source. Not all of them will be compatable.
    4) MS, who has taken over the project from Intel in the interim, will drag their heels and still produce a sub-par product--but the functionality from the better products will eventually make their way down to the commercial items.

    Eventually, we'll have good HTPCs. Not as fast as we'd like and not as good as we want, but they'll be better than if Intel hadn't done this.

    --

    "People who do stupid things with hazardous materials often die." -- Jim Davidson on alt.folklore.urban
  51. Intel seem to like the ?II? names by scottfk · · Score: 1

    PIIX... VIIV...

    So maybe "II" means "Intel Inside," but what about P, X, V and, er that other V?

    --

    Be seeing you.

    scott

    1. Re:Intel seem to like the ?II? names by plasmacutter · · Score: 1

      I think V is the beginning letter of a word in an obscure language which means "to screw the average consumer with drm and platform lockin"

      --
      VLC FOR MAC IS DYING! IF YOU DEVELOP, PLEASE SAVE IT!!
  52. VIIV==DRM according to the Inquirer by yeremein · · Score: 1
  53. Re:VIIV? by babyblink · · Score: 1

    Pheeew Pheeew!

    --
    [self dealloc];
  54. Sounds similar to "veevee". by CyricZ · · Score: 1

    A quick glance and an attempt at pronunciation may result in it sounding much like "veevee". "Veevee" is a common slang term for "vagina" in many parts of the world.

    --
    Cyric Zndovzny at your service.
  55. Ever used Media Center? by everphilski · · Score: 1

    Media Center is a mature, stable product. With support options. MythTV is none of the above. Media Center makes sense from a commercial point of view.

    -everphilski-

  56. Viiv? by eno2001 · · Score: 1

    All I can think of is Vivian from that classic 80s series "The Young Ones" and Rick yammering on saying, "Have we got a video"? when they had a video. How many 80s kids here remember that?

    --
    -"...bad old ideas look confusingly fresh when they are packaged as technology" - Jaron Lanier (Digital Maoism on Edge.o
  57. One of their Unix people... by suitepotato · · Score: 1

    ...had a psycho moment in the shower one morning, and doodled "Vi" in the steamed up mirror backwards. Good thing it wasn't Emacs or their next project could have been named something like "scame" which we'd all predictably call "scam-e".

    --
    If my grammar and spelling are off, I am [distracted/tired/careless] (take your pick)
  58. Apparently not, but you're wrong. by 8086ed · · Score: 1

    That's all.

  59. ViiV.... because 'VAIO' worked out so well.... by rbanzai · · Score: 1

    Typical marketing stupidity.

  60. Remember, Remember... by montale127 · · Score: 1

    ... the VIIV of November

    --
    You'd be surprised what's not on the map in this country. - Mulder
  61. falling further behind the times by senatorpjt · · Score: 1

    WWIV is still around?

  62. NIN, imo by Kamiza+Ikioi · · Score: 1

    Could be HIV, if the middle bar in the H fell down /.

    Or, someone who likes the Vive shampoo. Pronouced the same, I think.

    Or, VI = 6, IV = backwards 6 = 9, == 69.

    Could be an acronym. "Vote Independant In Venezuela". It's a Pat Robertson conspiracy!

    But, my money is on a NIN fan in marketting. It's close to NIN, without the middle I.

    --
    I8-D
  63. What if they call it VIXI? by brainnolo · · Score: 1

    It would be way more appropriate for THAT device.

    VIXI is the latin for "i lived" so "i'm dead".

  64. This is cool... by el_womble · · Score: 1

    ... now everytime INTeL announce something Mac Zealots get to say something less than interesting and completely speculative... so here goes :)

    Clearly this is the precurser to Apple bringing out a set-top box to access their new iMovie Video store. The Apple Viiv, in combination with the iViiv will allow subscribers to download 'HD Quality' movies on both their TV and the on the move. Priced at just under the national debt of Cambodia, this product is expected to appeal to New Yorkers, who will where the white rimmed glasses (that act as the screen) with pride as they walk under trucks in and around Manhatten.

    In other news, the FDA are concerned that obsessive watching of movies on the glasses may cause 'square eyes' a deadly virus originally thought to have been imported by Chinese immigrants. The MPAA have kindly asked them to keep their noses out, as they are "raking it in".

    --
    Scared of flying, pointy things snce 1979!
  65. Re:No it's 8 by MS · · Score: 1
    Roman numbers are added, not appended, and if one or more symbols with a lower value precede another with a higer value, they are subtracted, therefore:

    V + IIV = 5 + 3 = 8

    Yes, there are many ways to write the same number: VIIII is equivalent to IX, or XXXXX is equivalent to L

    Maybe they intend this to be the Octium [x886] (following Pentium [x586], Sexium [x686] and Heptium [x786]), and as this processor is meant for entertainment, games, fun etc., they made a joke of its name also.

    :-)

  66. Intel said they'll use Linux to reduce costs. by delire · · Score: 1

    Apparently..
    Charles Chou, San Francisco; Jessie Shen, DigiTimes.com [Thursday 25 August 2005]

    According to unspecified Taiwan-based PC makers, Intel is currently working with software developers to design middleware application software for the Linux operating system (OS) for its Viiv (rhymes with five) consumer PC platform to reduce the cost and selling price of the PCs.

    Viiv-based PCs will initially be based on the Microsoft Window Media Center OS, which should drive up the costs, as a special OS authorization is needed. Currently, quotes for Media Center PCs are more than US$1,200, compared to US$400-500 for average PCs, the makers explained.
    From here.
  67. viiv ? by l3v1 · · Score: 1

    Maybe ViiV should be read like V2V (as in "v" "to" "v") for which I could make up any number of combinations with words starting with "v". Other than then, it look quite stupid.
     

    --
    I am putting myself to the fullest possible use, which is all I can think that any conscious entity can ever hope to do.
  68. Not 57. by RoverDaddy · · Score: 1

    V IIV is 53. Remember "I before V except after C". Didn't you learn anything in Latin school?

    --
    RETURN without GOSUB in line 1050
  69. Like Commodore 64? by RoverDaddy · · Score: 1

    Now I know this one will be a winner.

    --
    RETURN without GOSUB in line 1050
  70. The first question in my mind is... by Robotech_Master · · Score: 1

    ...would you display neen on VIIV?

    --
    Editor Emeritus and Senior Writer, TeleRead.org
  71. Re:Worst Name by Poltras · · Score: 1

    When I search something as Windows XP, I actually does Windows+XP, not XP... was that same for Windows 2000 and Windows NT... I know Vista is as common as a spanish noun and won't search for it alone. If people do that, they're not lazy, but stupid. My point: GGGGGGP was funny, not insightful.

  72. has anyone else noticed by mapmaker · · Score: 1

    that these days Intel develops fewer and fewer actual products but more and more brands?

  73. XBMC by adnausium · · Score: 1

    give me xbox media center any day of the week over craptastic M$ MCE any day

    --
    Don't ya hate it when the correct spelling of your favorite screen name is taken?
  74. Re:Ding ding ding ding! by Poltras · · Score: 1

    Geez, someone mod parent Redundant... he mentioned that whose must not be written of after everyone wrote it.

  75. More great Intel marketing by Thornkin · · Score: 1

    I think Intel should get the engineers out of their marketing department. I mean, look at some of the winners they've had recently:

    HT Technology
    EM64T
    SSE/2/3
    MMX

    and now VIIV. WTF?

    Are consumers really supposed to get something out of these? At least Centrino was capable of being pronounced.

  76. Re:Viiv? by Madoc+Owain · · Score: 1

    An appropriate comment:

    "Vivian!! Eat the telly!!"

  77. Re:Viiv? by th77 · · Score: 1
    YES WE'VE GOT A BLOODY VIDEO!!!

    I think that's the only The Young Ones I've seen.

    --
    Your favorite sig sucks