The DigitalRV Blog

After a fun trip to Staples I’ve returned to the comfort of home.  Soon though, home will be on the road with my trailer, and that’s why I’m testing out the wireless service in the first place.  Getting on the road will be great, but I need to make sure I can stay in touch while out.  I’ve always been able to connect with Verizon’s service, but I wanted higher speed access, as doing many things on this website require some bandwidth.

Many of the wireless carriers are now rolling out “High Speed” internet on their networks.  The same network that allows you to place cell phone calls can also get you onto the Internet faster than ever before.  But the new high speed services are just starting to roll out.  That means many areas will have slower speed for the near future.  Don’t despair, each carrier seems to be rolling out higher speed access at a quick pace.

I spent 20 minutes in the Staples parking lot this morning.  During that time I saw many cars come and go, several printers get loaded into trunks (hopefully paid for), and used DSLReports.com to check my network speed.  It was consistent, upload & download.  120kbps range every time.

While not “super quick” it was functional.  Verizon promises offers speeds of 400- 700 kbps on their high speed access, and the access is capable of bursts up to 2 Mbps.  Where the high speed access isn’t available yet you can still see decent speeds, and 120kbps is still quicker than a standard landline dialup.

The service is $59.00 per month with a 2 year contract at the moment.  If you’re on the road a lot, this might be an interesting option.  As I noted in the earlier blog posting, it’s not satellite, but the equipment and network connection costs aren’t either.  Would I like satellite?  Yes.  But for the moment this service will do nicely.

For fun I’ve also posted DigitalRV’s second official video webcast.  It’s from the Staples’ parking lot, and shows some of the actual testing that was performed.  Before you click over to see it, be warned the file is 5.2MB, so it might take a few moments to load, even on high speed internet. Click the link above, or here to see it.

After a great deal of indecision on my part, I finally signed up for Verizon’s broadband wireless Internet service. Now I’m off testing it. Where I live has little coverage from any cell phone company (go figure), so I took a little ride to Plaistow NH.

Currently I’m writing from the parking lot of a Staples, trying out the new network card I just received from Verizon. Hey, you’ve got to try things out within the return window folks.

I just hit DSLReports.com,and found that my upload and download are above 120K each.  Not bad, but still not my cable modem at home.

However, I know I’m not in the “high speed” area at the moment.  Verizon continues to roll out their EVDO high speed network access across the country.  For the moment, this is my best way to connect to the net while on the road.  While satellite offers higher speed everywhere, the up front price is still too prohibitive for me.

I’ll be posting further updates on the service later today.  For the moment, I can say one thing.  I’m on the Internet writing this blog from a Staples parking lot, and the speed is ok.  Enough said. 

Last night I got a good deal of testing in with the new IPod that is video capable. Just plain fun. But there’s always a catch.

Moving video to your computer is absolutely a great way to save space in your RV. Where once you had many DVD’s, you could now have one computer system with video on the drive. All of the how to’s for that are in the Digital RV book, so I won’t cover that here.

If you have started building a digital video library, good for you.  You can watch it on your computer, display on your TV, use your computer as your TV, etc.  But now you might want to do more.  Maybe you like the super portable video idea.  It could be that like me, you really want to try out the new Ipod or PSP for yourself.

On both Windows and Mac, your video display programs now allow for exporting video to a portable device.  Everybody’s getting on the band wagon.  And exporting, while time consuming, is an easy enough process.  But it might leave you a little surprised if you’re not aware of 1 simple thing.

In order to export to your portable device, the video gets converted to a smaller format, and saved on your drive.

What does that mean?  Well, your original video remains on your computer, and the new “smaller” video is also saved on your computer.  That means more drive space consumed.

For example, last night I took a movie file that I’d created a few weeks ago and exported it to the video IPod.  The movie file was in my EyeTV, and it was 1.8 GB.  The exported video for the new IPod gets saved in the ITunes program, and after shrinking it was 1 GB.  So, now I have 2 files of the same movie on my drive consuming 2.8 GB total.  Sure, all together these 2 files take less space than 1 DVD.  Great.  But I’m still consuming more space than I want to.

So, for all you folks looking to save on space in your RV, and space in your computer, be advised that you’ll consume a great deal more drive space when creating files for a portable video player.

My advice, take a look through the book again.  Consider the portable drive options listed there.  I’ve gotten my own approach.  The portable firewire drive I use on the road will now be used 50% as a backup drive, and 50% as a media drive.  That keeps my computer’s drive space free, and my media in one place.

I’ve got fork & knife in hand.  Plenty of salt, because flavor is important.  And there’s a sizable plate waiting for me.

Not too long ago I did a review on IPods for the RV.  I’m a huge fan of the IPod, so no word eating there.  But I did have reservations about the value of being able to play video on an IPod.  There’s nothing like hands on positive experiences to make a fella start shaking the salt and digging in.

The tech junkie in me could no longer resist adding the latest IPod to the household.  With the upgrades on EyeTV, and a slew of Video Podcasts on my Itunes (many free podcasts out there), I really needed to do some long term testing outside of a store.  Plus today’s weather was terrible.  The frigid weather is back in full force, snow was flying, and the false spring has gone away.

It’s at this point we’ll go through my rationalizations….

• EyeTV2 offers converting saved video to the Video IPod.  That’s reason 1.
• I’ve got a bunch of Video Podcasts from Mac World’s Expo, and other tech shows.  Number 2
• Horrible weather.  Number 3

If you need to justify getting your next tech toy, you can borrow my reasons.  Add to them if you like. It will help ease your mind.

Now, with that out of the way……  Video on the new IPod is viewable.  Not only viewable, but enjoyable.  I got a giggle out of watching a favorite cartoon episode on it after loading the episode from EyeTV2.  Then I watched my tech shows too.  Yes, I can watch them on my Mac, so there was no need to run out and try one today.  If that’s what you’re saying, I suggest you review the list above again.  Learn the list, know the list, and use it whenever you need to justify getting a toy. 

So, I retract all reservations about viewing video on the new IPod.  Even folks with less than perfect vision (I watched with my glasses off) will find that the quality is something in the realm of “unexpected”.

Now, I need some water to go with my meal.  More details will be posted after I finish dinner…… 

After CES & Mac World’s Expo a lot of new gadgetry has come out. Before getting into the truly new, I thought I’d revisit an old favorite, Elgato’s Eye TV.

I’ve been an EyeTV user for more than a year now. It allows me to view TV on my Macintosh Laptop. It also allows recording of TV. I can connect my USB EyeTV box to any antenna feed or analog cable feed and treat my computer like I would my TV with a Tivo attached. Pretty cool. For detailed information on the how to’s of setting such a system up, check out the book for in depth information.

At Mac World Elgato launched their new software package, EyeTV2. The day of the announcement I couldn’t wait, and downloaded the new version. This time however, I had to pay $49.00 for my Elgato software, unlike the free first version of EyeTV. It seems Elgato is moving toward software manufacturing, and leaving the hardware part of the equation to other companies. I hope the new model works for them!

Once I got the license key for the new software in e-mail (it took hours to get after my purchase) I started checking it out. The interface is much improved, and worth the $49.00. Normally, to look at a TV guide you have to connect out to TitanTV via your web browser. Now there’s an integrated EPG (Electronic Program Guide). Big improvement, and something I was looking for.

TV-viewing and recording remain the same. You can select recording quality, size of file output, etc. The big changes are in the interface. Along with the new built in EPG users can also create “play lists” like ITunes. You can then organize your recordings into their own category folders. A nice feature. Additionally, now recorded show information is put right into your recording. You used to have to fill in the additional information on your own. Nice time saving feature!

On top of interface changes, Elgato also included some “bells & whistles” type features. Users have always been able to export their video to different formats for viewing with EyeTV. Now there are a few quick export buttons on the interface window. You can quickly select “Burning with Toast” to create a DVD with the Toast software (3rd party DVD software), or you can quickly export your content to the new Video IPod.

The image below shows the new “quick export” options. As you can see, users can get information on their recording, play it, “Toast it”, or send to the new IPod format. These quick buttons are definitely useful, but not a groundshaking upgrade.

Overall, the new EyeTV2 sports a great many new features that made the purchase worth while. Still, I was hoping for more. After experiencing software like SageTV while putting the book together I’ve devoloped an expectation in what I’d like to see in media management software. EyeTV 2 has gotten 65% of the way there, but SageTV (a Windows program) sports a great many more features. Given that EyeTV2’s retail price will be going up after the introductory period, and that it will be selling for the same price as Sage I hope to see some free upgrades in the coming months.

What would I like to see you ask? Well, I’d like to see the final step forward look a great deal like SageTV. That means:

• Setting Favorite Shows through the built in EPG. Not a feature in EyeTV2 yet. If you want to record the next season of 24, you’ll have to manually enter each episode in.
• Allowing the software to learn your preferences, and record shows it thinks match your interest.
• Automatically creating folders by program name. EyeTV2 allows you to create such folders, SageTV does it for you.
• Handling more media than just video recording media. SageTV offers to add your music and photos to it’s library list. Nice & convinient!

EyeTV2 is a great product, and worth the current $49.00 upgrade fee. For current EyeTV users I’d recomend getting this latest package. But after playing with Sage & Beyond TV on a Windows system while writing the book, I’m looking for more now in my Mac’s media management abilities. I think Elgato is the company that will bring that to me, so I patiently watch and wait for the next update!

It’s taken me a good part of the week to digest Mac’s latest announcements. Now that I’ve had the time necessary, I’m coming up empty. I don’t know how I feel about the new Intel based Macs.

Unlike those die hard Mac users who resisted OSX, I’m not one to hang on to the old because I’m a fanatic. I became a Mac user again in 2002 when they offered a superior operating system, OSX. The stability of the system, based on Unix, was obvious. The security, and interface were huge bonuses.

In the mid-90’s I switched form Mac to Windows. Win 95 was faster, cheaper, stronger, better. Then I switched to Mac for the same reasons in 02′. What does the processor switch do to me? Not sure.

After reading through all of Apple’s hype, Mac World’s take on it, and other blogs around the block I know several things. The new systems may or may not run your current extra software. They have a technology called Rosetta which should allow your current applications to run on the new architecture. But really system intensive programs might bog down. Gee, I bet that will affect my Adobe Creative Suite for sure.

Software makers are already getting ready with “Universal” software that will work with the new processors. That’s good. And really, if you’re buying a new machine, you might want to buy the new versions of your favorite tools anyway. Forced upgrades anyone? That’s one thing I don’t like, but we’ve all seen it often.

My bottom line. If the processor switch does not affect the stability and security of OSX then I’m not going to complain (much). I’m also not running out and getting a new IMac or latop tomorrow either. Patience on this issue. I’ve got my trusty G4 IBook, and my G5 box.

One thing I haven’t seen much on…..what’s going to happen to the G4’s & G5’s??? Anyone have a guess?

I’ve got a great deal to post in the next few days regarding all the fun toys that have been unveiled over the past few weeks.  I’d like to do more on those now, but duty calls.

Having just “released” the book, I’m learning all about marketing, sales, shipping, shipping costs, and becoming close with my local post office folks.  The book has been officially available less than a month, and I’m becoming busier by the day.  Who said running a small business was hard?  LOL (Laugh out loud). 

With each day I appreciate more and more how much people put into their small businesses.  Not complaining, just learning, and working to streamline the process.  My intent is to get on the road in the next few months and continue conducting “business as usual” while on the go.  Basically proving out that being a Digital RV’er means working from anywhere I like.  I’ll get there, but first I’m laying the groundwork to make smooth operations later on down the line.

Tomorrow I promise to have a post up on some fun tech again.  Friday too.

For RV’ers interested in portable music and portable video, we’ve got more options available to us than ever before. That’s great. But you’ve got to “read the fine print” before selecting a service.

Two sales models for your portable media are now available. Purchasing your media content, like ITunes, or a membership model where you rent the content for a period of time, like Napster. What’s the difference.

Put simply, you own one, and only rent the other. With ITunes music & video programming you pay a fee per item, and you own it($.99 for a song, $1.99 for a one hour TV show). Many other services offer you a membership for unlimited access to content. $9.99 sounds great for all the music you can fit on your MP3 player! Certainly a great deal cheaper than $.99 per song. Many of the membership services will let you use thousands of songs or videos for the cost of 10 downloads from ITunes.

You really need to think it through though. Membership services require your continued payment. If you discontinue a membership, all the songs that worked on your MP3 player will stop working. You don’t own them, you only rent them. If you’ve got a favorite song or favorite video, and you’re on a membership service, you’ll need to keep up the monthly fees to retain access to the content.

Which is better for the “on the go” RV’er. I’m not sure what your preferences are, but I know mine. When on the road I don’t always have access to the Internet. So the media content I have needs to be on my computer’s hard drive. If I need to get on the Internet to use a membership service I might not always be able to access it. The only way I could guarantee constant Internet access is to get a satellite setup, and media content isn’t that valuable to me (satellite costs a few dollars).

So, while membership services sound great, and cheaper than paying per episode, think it through. If you know there’s media you like and want to keep, pay the one time fee and buy the content. If you want unlimited access to new movies and music, maybe a membership service is right for you. Just keep in mind, your network connection will be the limiting factor when travelling the country.

Of course, we’ll see these technolgies develop quickly over the next year. A great deal can change in a short period of time!

The Consumer Electronics show had tons of great new gadgets this year. Several will be of interest to RV owners. The newest and biggest flat panels might not be your cup of tea, but many other unique items are sure to be of interest.

As I’d mentioned in “The Digital RV”, portable and downloadable video will be a big thing in the near future. Sure enough, many companies are getting on the video band wagon. There have been ways to share video on the internet, but many worked out to be illegal, poor quality, or both. Not any more. You’ll have plenty of selection to legal content before this year is out.

Google is starting up their own video download service (anything like Mac’s ITunes….). Apparently they’ve got a deal with the NBA and CBS at the moment. I’m sure they’ll look to expand that. If you need to see what it’s all about go to http://video.google.com/ .

Many other Internet video services have now popped up. One example is Vongo. If you’re a Mac user don’t bother clicking the link to Vongo.com . Currently Mac owners get a page stating there’s an OS error, you need Windows to view their site. Glad I’ve got a Windows box so I can check out their site. Or maybe not. Vongo will be offering service to Mac users sooner or later, so have a little patience.

Vongo offers “streaming videos” for your viewing pleasure. If you decide to become a member of Vongo you pay a monthly fee to watch movies over the internet on your PC. Pretty cool, but is it useful for RV owners. Not really, at least not yet.

In order to use Vongo you’ll need to download their free software (for viewing) and sign up for a membership.  Ok so far.  Vongo is accessed through the Internet, so you’ll need an Internet connection too.  Given the size of movies, you’ll need a high speed Internet connection that you can depend on.  For an RV owner that means a good WiFi hotspot, a great connection to your cellular data network, or satellite Internet.  Now it’s getting a little harder for an RV owner to use this service well.

If you’ve got all the bases covered, good for you.  Vongo might be of interest.  You can watch movies from their broad selection whenever you’d like.  But you cannont keep them on your system.  The video isn’t yours.  It’s still Vongo’s.  You’re not purchasing movies, you’re renting them over the net.  You can’t store them, or convert them for use on a device like the PSP or Video IPod.  So, in order to use the service you’re tied to the net.  If you have no Internet service for a time, you have no access to movies from Vongo.  Not quite there yet for a mobile lifestyle.

Switching gears, I’d mentioned Video IPod.  If you’re like me, and don’t have one, you’re not out of the video loop.  A new device for older IPods will now allow you to watch video from your older IPod.  ATO offers a docking device that has a video screen on it for IPods.  Connect your older IPod and watch video that you store on it.  The device is called the ISee.  At $249 though, maybe you should just buy a Video IPod.  Still, in the end, I think the screens are too small to consider them really useful. Very neat from the tech geek perspective though!

There are many other interesing devices that were shown at CES.  Many Video IPod to TV type adapters.  Those might be useful to RV’ers.  If you’ve got your favorite shows on your IPod, and have a slick flat panel TV in your rig, you could connect the IPod to the TV and watch your recordings.  But there are already ways to do that.  Now we’re seeing more devices to help.  Check out Griffin for their latest IPod offerings.

In the end, there’s a growing supply of portable video solutions.  Which one is right for the RV’er.  Not sure yet.  So many companies are making so many deals.  There needs to be some time taken to see what content providers will win out.  Also, we need to figure out which sales model works best, owning content or renting content via membership (more on that in a later post).  I wouldn’t run out and sign up for any service and believe it’s for the long haul.  Let the video battle shake out a bit, and see what rises to the top.  However, it’s nice to see RV’ers are going to have more portable media solutions than ever before!

Well, last week was CES (Consumer Electronics Show), and this week it’s Mac World’s Expo.  I haven’t forgotten about either, and I’m sorting through all the latest information.  Later in the week I’ll be posting some interesting items and picks.  From what I’ve seen so far, video is one of the big items this year.  Video “on demand” over the Internet.  Not a shocker.

Some of my favorite manufacturers are releasing new hardware and software this week as well.  Sure enough, there are several items that will be of use to RV owners.

As a “sneak peak” for the favorites I’ll post this week I’d suggest going to LaCie’s web site and looking at their new portable drives.  While pricey, they’re definitely of interest to anyone looking to save some space.  In particular, their new “Rugged All Terrain Hard Drive” has definitely peaked my interest.  It’s yet another portable drive that can be used for backup storage, video, audio, whatever you’d like to store!  Like many of LaCie’s other portables it doesn’t require a power adapter, rather it draws from the USB or Firewire connection to your computer.  And the size……well, check out the link above.

I won’t be racing out to buy the new LaCie.  I’ve already got their 100GB portable drive, and haven’t quite filled it up yet.  But this new drive sure is tempting!
There will be more on PVR’s this week, some new video viewers, and even a few items not worth picking up at the moment.  Yup, I’ve got a few items on my “needs to be panned” list.

Off for some more reading.  Oh, and we’ll have another video web cast coming up soon….