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Boxee vs. Zinc vs. Hulu
For those with a Windows PC and some time for TV, DeviceGuru writes "Which is the best Internet media streaming application for a media-center PC? Boxee, Zinc, or the new Hulu Desktop? A post at DeviceGuru.com reviews these three media streaming platforms and draws some interesting conclusions. Key pros and cons are tabulated and numerous screenshots are included. Interestingly, despite lots of Boxee hype, Zinc already has a number of valuable features that Boxee is scrambling to add to its next version, due out in the fall. On the other hand, Boxee boasts far more third-party content-access applications support."
Since stupid rights managements mean they're only usable in one country.
You're just sad you don't live in the the greatest nation God ever created on the Earth.
Suck my American cock.
Urgh... Why do people insist on using some overhyped, bloated services that only work in US? My favorite applications of this type are those that can be open neatly in an FF tab, without taking up half of my RAM and which reside in countries where **AA is just a funky notion those crazy Americans keep babbling about.
right...
(Note: We are not a GOP-sters, Republicans or affiliated with any parties, and as George Washington warned against parties We do not believe in parties and, unlike most people, We evaluate every issue on a case by case basis and do not defer to the judgments of politicians who are corrupted and untrustworthy as a group.)
Obama is controlled by the same people as Bush see The Obama Deception documentary [youtube.com]
Yuan Forwards Show China May Buy Fewer Treasuries, UBS Says [bloomberg.com]
Anemic Treasury auction effects felt beyond bonds [reuters.com]
The Sherminator Kicks Some Wall Street Ass [dailybail.com]
China Angry That Fed Is Deliberately Destroying The Dollar [bloomberg.com]
China suggests switch from dollar as reserve currency [bbc.co.uk]
What are the reserve currencies? [wsj.net]
Anatomy of a taxpayer giveaway to investors [ml-implode.com]
Geithner rescue package 'robbery of the American people' [telegraph.co.uk]
Geithner just put only the rich in Titanics lifeboats [examiner.com]
Geithner Plan Will Rob US Taxpayers [cnbc.com]
A False Choice [viewfromsi...valley.com]
Bargain-hunting house buyers wearing on sellers ajc.com [ajc.com]
Time to Take the Steering Wheel out of Geithner's Hands [alternet.org]
Socialising and Privatising [freeradical.co.nz]
Fannie, Freddie to pay out bonuses [politico.com]
Fitch Raises Prime Jumbo Loan Loss Estimates Sharply [researchrecap.com]
Chinas central bank on Monday proposed replacing the US dollar as the international reserve currency with a new global system controlled by the International Monetary Fund [ft.com]
- Russia on an new world reserve currency: It is necessary to work out and adopt internationally recognized standards for macroeconomic and budget policy, which are binding for the leading world economies, including the countries issuing reserve currencies - the Kremlin proposals read. [en.rian.ru]
- President Barack "The Teleprompter" Obama is deeply connected to corruption. Rahm Emanuel, his Chief of Staff, is radical authoritarian statist whose father was part of the murderous civilian-killing Israeli terrorist organization known as IRGUN who is obsessed with gun control and compulsory service to the country in a capacity which he has yet to define. (Think brown-shirts.) Barack is intimately connected to disgraced Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (Rahm inherited Rod's federal-congress seat). Barack Obama is also connected to William Ayers (who ghost-wrote his books); Ayers is a man who promotes the concept that civilian collateral damage is ok in a war against freedom. Saul Alinsky, a man who made the quote as follows, "From all our legends, mythology, and history (and who is to know where mythology leaves off and history begins or which is which), the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom - Lucifer," is a man who had much influence on the young Barack Obama. A man who admired Lucifer for gaining his own kingdom in an act of rebellion. Barack also subscribed to Preacher Jeremiah Wright, who is himself a Afro-elitist who wants all the people who largely "pay the freight" to suffer at the hands of angry African-American mobs. There are over 30 million Americans on food stamps, and more blacks are in prison and on food-stamps per capita than anyone else. The problem with Wright is simply this: the facts are "racist." There is no conspiracy against African Americans here by citizens.
- Obama - AIPAC-bootlicker, corrupted to the bone Chicago-style and a traitor to the US Constitution and a liar whose real "legal" name could very well be Barry Sotero and an Indonesian citizen (The US does not allow plural citizenship) (If you care, not that it matters anymore under a lawless authoritarian totalitarian regime such as Barack Obama's, you can see more here at an aggregator; obamacrimes.info [obamacrimes.info] )
- Raytheon lobbyist in Pentagon, many lobbyists getting exemptions even though Obama promi
Wasn't Zinc just proved to cause loss of smell in people? Then I guess you wouldn't be able to tell if it stinks or not!
-- You are in a maze of little, twisty passages, all different... --
"For those US residents with a Windows PC and some time for TV"
There, fixed.
As a non-US resident, Mininova is still the best bang for the buck to me.
Ah, what amazing bravado Mr Internet has.
Now go back to paying your taxes for all your military and big business handouts.
For some it doesn't matter. For example, if u are on linux, then it boils down to Boxee and... Boxee. (Assuming that crappy table in "conclusions" switched OS Support columns)
If you are outside US, then again, it limits your choice.
So, this might be relevant, but only for people living in US and using Windows.
Also, there are Linux only solutions, like for example MythTV, can't say about selection of videos there thou... I guess its small.
Are these stand alone apps or WMC plugins? I have a windows vista (I know, I know, but I've had a ton of issues getting mythbuntu to work and work well) box running the Media Browser plugin, and it's a really awesome set up. It automatically adds my new media to its library (this is a basic WMC feature), it pulls movie posters, cast information, and all relevant metadata from IMDB... it's just all in all fantastic. I'm not looking to add another standalone program to my HTPC box, but I would be fine with adding hulu TV if it was a plugin and worked without stepping on the toes of Media Browser. The hulu site says it's optimized for WMC, but seems to indicate it is a standalone program. Does anyone have experience with it?
They refer to the iPod Touch as an iTouch...
I prefer Plex over all of those. Surprised it was not included.
I tend to agree that the "social" aspect of boxee is a bit in the way in the main interface, but what the reviewer didn't mention is whether zinc or hulu do anything with local media. From the zinc website it seems like it too can scan local media like boxee, what I would have liked in the review is some coverage over how well each one worked. In my experience, boxee does a really good job at this and includes a built-in interface for correcting the mistakes (aka Wrong Video link). I do agree that boxee could use a global search, however, I'm quite happy with boxee having just converted away from a mythtv setup.
http://www.cbs8.com/global/story.asp?s=10610217
FTFA: "Test data will be used by United States Strategic Command planners and Department of Energy laboratories."
Translation: we were testing our ability to protect ourselves from a N. Korean missile launch. Gee Obongo, I thought the Missile Defense Shield was an overpriced toy, and unnecessary in a world where all megalomaniacal dictators can be appeased with a Kumbayah letter-writing campaign or YouTube video from you. After all, you DID deride it as unproven technology during the presidential campaign, and then proceeded to axe $1.2bn from the program's budget once you took office. Why the sudden change of heart? Let me guess: you had to take of the rose-colored glasses once you were the one behind the desk receiving daily threat briefings and making decisions about the safety of a quarter of a billion citizens. I'll bet the disconnect between reality and your world view was so great that you laid awake in bed sweating for nights on end, thinking, "Oh shit, how can I pull this off without looking like Bush, and without having the next 9-11 happen on my watch, or without laying the groundwork for a massive successful terrorist attack like Clinton did?"
Why settle for a bunch of DRM streaming that they will pull the run out from under you at any time. Most of the content is available to be recorded or you can rent. Either it will not have commercials or MythTV will automatically skip them. You get to pick what happens.
I have really been liking Zinc - very smooth operation, plus it looks so cool. Since I can use Zinc to access Hulu (and it does a pretty good job of runing Hulu - maximizing when it can, letting me pause and skip and so forth with the remote) and so many other sources, I see no need for Hulu Desktop. My Media Center bliss is nearly complete... If only it would aggregate Justin TV (a nice source which could really use a UI makeover)
This is not a self-referential sig.
Since none of them support OS X unless you have an Intel processor, I'm ticked at them all. XBMC DOES, but so far I can't get it to stream Netflix OR Hulu (there are ways, but they require you to have another computer and to purchase Playon...FAIL).
Look, I'm not going to shell out hundreds of dollars just to have a media center computer. I happen to have some older hardware that is suitable for the task. PPC support makes sense because I think a fair number of people are walking the same path. So until Boxee gets off their collective butts and decides to support PPC, I'll pass.
"We don't know what we are doing, but we are doing it very carefully,..." Wherry, R.J. Personnel Psychology (1995)
Nice overview Rick.
For myself, I'm still finding that Apple TV and iTunes are the best combo. The new Apple TV firmware upgrade 2.4--http://practical-tech.com/entertainment/apple-tv-2-4-well-worth-the-download/--in particular has really made the Apple TV more useful than ever. Apple doesn't whisper a word of it, but the code's really been cleaned up and the result is a much more efficient media box.
The list of my problems with that combo--starting with the simple fact that it's proprietary as proprietary can be--is longer than my arm. Still, for me it's the best choice.
Steven
and this is like so totally cool ya know
Let me summarize what you are saying, "I don't know why new software isn't supported on a computer and OS that is 3-4 years old. Good thing I have something older that works. Until these new software makers decide to support my old hardware, I won't be able to use them."
Self proclaimed wannabe geek. You know how it is. Most of us who read this stuff probably fit in that category.
I had been using rtorrent, pytvshows, screen, and rtgui to manage media downloads on my mythbox. I've since switched over to boxee, although it's running on top of the same mythbuntu install I was using before, and could easily revert back to. I don't really use the streaming apps boxee includes, not do I need to use its torrent capabilities since my own system is more robust. Boxee won me over simply because the interface looks slicker, it grabs cover art and show information automatically, gives one-click access to the apple trailer if available, grabs subtitles with a click, and my downloaded shows are automatically in my media library without having to manually rebuild the database every time I add something.... all things mythtv does not do. If and when mythtv adds these things, I would probably switch back.
The summery first talks about the PC and then about a platform. Which is it?
For the PC I prefer MPlayer-plugin with Firefox. As a platform I use my Linux hosting and as a player I use http://www.gdd.ro/gddflvplayer.html
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
Obviously you missed on the best of teh media streaming sites ninjavideo.net.. DIVX quality. No commercials. No hassles..
Hulu Desktop anyone? Works with OS X and M$. It supports remote controllers too. Pure win and their software runs great. They carry everthing from primetime to independents...
and im leik I'M NOT TROLLIN!!! i'm boxxy se Lameness filter encountered. Post aborted!
I for one want more of a "youtube" experience so far as the tech goes- I want to be able to see the services on my archos and ps3 and whatever other media device supports flash and streaming media rather than having to install a PC application in order to view it- I want to sit on my couch or in a hotspot watching not in front of the computer since there are already a ton of options if I wanted to sit in front of the computer