The DigitalRV Blog

Recently there’s been more chatter about DRM and the media content we all consume. First off though, what is DRM?

DRM stands for Digital Rights Management. DRM technologies are used to keep consumers from making many copies of their favorite CD, DVD, MP3, or MP4 and sharing them with friends. In other words, it’s copyright protection. Nothing wrong with protecting the rights of artists, I’m in total agreement with it.

The stick in the mud here though is that your rights as a consumer also get put aside often. If you want to make a copy of your favorite movie DVD as a backup, shouldn’t you be able to? How about backing up your ITunes library? How about restoring your ITunes library if your computer fails, but your IPod has everything on it? Well, you can’t easily do these things!

While the controversy around DRM continues, there’s one easy suggestion I have for getting DRM free music. Radio Shark & XM.

With my XM radio I have access to so many different types of music and talk radio. It’s great! XM’s “Fred Radio” is a favorite channel. They play “Classic Alternative.” Can’t believe they’re calling music I listen to Classic.

The XM I own has an FM transmitter built into it. So, while in the Airstream I can listen to the XM over my radio. I can also pick up the XM radio with my Radio Shark. What does the Radio Shark do exactly?

Radio Shark is a USB antenna that you can plug into your Windows or Mac system. It comes with a software package that allows you to listen to AM & FM radio through your computer. Pretty cool. It also allows you to pause, rewind, fast forward, and record whatever you’re listening to over the airwaves.

The key to this article is the word “record”. You can record whatever you’re listening to over the airwaves. In my case, I record what comes across my XM. Digital radio gets recorded to my laptop, and when I’m done recording I can export to my IPod.

What that means to me is I can add to my music library through my XM subscription.

Now, this type of recording is also a big issue. But it’s been a big issue for a long time. People can record shows to their Tivo and copy them to their laptop. During the 80’s we all ran around with cassette tapes, recording our favorite songs off the radio (what a pain that was). VHS recorders captured TV content we missed. The list goes on and on.

However things play out with DRM and copyright issues for today’s latest recordings, there’s one way you can record the music you want. The Griffin Radio Shark.

Just don’t record and redistribute what you’ve saved. That’s where the law is clear, and you’ll have trouble on your doorstep!

Maybe you’re like me. Severely allergic to half the planet! Part of my year long trip in my RV was to find the right spot where I could live with the least allergens around!

If you’re looking to find the right spots to breathe easy, the Internet offers a fantastic way to track allergens.

Take a look at Pollen.com’s web site. Exactly what you need, when you need it. No additional forecasts, hunting through the latest hurricane reports or blizzard watched. Just listings on where allergens are, how bad they are, and places that are a little better today.

The main page at Pollen.com shows you the overall pollen levels across the U.S. Take a look at the graphic below.

As you can see, they list the best and worst 5 cities in the U.S each day. Talk about convinient!

You can go a little further and also check exactly where you are. Type in your zip code and get the following report….

Now, if you’re full-timing and planning your next move you’ll have all the information you need. Finding the best spot for your allergies in the U.S. couldn’t be easier! All thanks to being a Digital RV’er too!

In a surprising move, Apple launched Safari 3’s Beta for both Macintosh and Windows.  Why would Apple do that, given Firefox exists?

Over the past few years I’ve been using both Macintosh & Windows.  The browsers provided by each of the software manufacturers have never been as good as others available on the Internet.  Both Explorer and Safari always fell behind the curve.  And unfortunately, Safari for Windows (and Mac for that matter) still doesn’t measure up.

Apple claims speed increases in the latest inception of Safari over Explorer and Firefox.  Hunting the web you’ll find many groups that have already done benchmark testing to see if it’s true.  So far, the reviews seem to be mixed.

What is clear regarding the latest version of Safari is simple.  It’s no Firefox.

Fortunately, the latest version of Safari displays XHTML and CSS properly.  After a recent change to Gadget’s Airstream Chronicles I received several complaints from Windows users who browse the web with Internet Explorer.  Amazingly enough, Firefox, Netscape, & Safari could read the new version of the site perfectly.  Explorer choked, and it seems it was dying on the updated Style Sheets.  Geeze, Microsoft still can’t get it right, even if industry standards comply with the updated site.   Safari on Windows does in fact display the updated site properly, so there’s a plus in Apple’s favor.
Why the big software vendors think it’s necessary to create their own browser is beyond me.   My simple suggestion to everyone out there.  Get Firefox, enjoy your web browsing experience!  Sorry Apple, sorry Mircrosoft……you’re still not getting it in the browser space, and that’s fine, there are other people who do get it.

Need to read some reviews?  Here you go:

http://blog.wired.com/cultofmac/2007/06/wwdc_safari_3_o.html 

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070612-afirst-look-safari-3-on-windows.html 

Take it from me, both Windows & Mac users:  Stick to Firefox!

Over the course of the past year I’ve gotten to talk with many readers. And I’ve heard observations on the book regarding most everything covered.

One theme has popped up several times, and I’d like to address it here. A reader recently wrote in a simple to the point observation. “You seem to have a very strong bias to Macintosh.”

The short answer is, “Yes, I do.”

I’ll always be happy to write Windows how to’s, create podcasts for Windows users as a tech demonstration, etc. But when push comes to shove, you’ll find me working on my MacBook Pro, or my IBook, not my HP Windows system.

Ah, he’s another one of those Macintosh hardcore followers. That’s got to be it. Actually, no, it’s something more than that. The truth of the matter is that the Digital RV is all about recomending technology that works for RV’ers. On the road things are very different from home. If something breaks down or is hard to use while in a remote spot, who can help you out. Normally, nobody. So, in the interest of sharing the best avaialble with readers, I always lean toward Mac now.

So, has this author always been a strong Mac proponent? No, not at all. At one time I urged people away from Macintosh and towards the Windows operating system. And there were good reasons to do so then. Now there are good reasons to move away from Windows only systems back to Mac.

In the early 90’s while in undergraduate I worked in the campus computer lab. It was a pretty even split. IBM clones, and little rectangular Macs. No strong preference at that point in time. My biggest issue in that lab was keeping the printers running near the end of each semester.

While in grad school doing my thesis on the Economics of Digital Networks I moved toward Windows. Windows NT was out. Stable system. Web servers were easy to install. Roaming packs of hackers hadn’t hit the scene quite yet. Windows was robust, memory efficient, and the software / hardware was cheap compared to Mac.

The first job out of grad school was with a small magazine / internet publisher. They had installed a Windows NT server in an office full of Macs. I got to compare the systems first hand, and Macintosh lost out in my mind. That was 1995. The Macs were memory hogs, the equipment was expensive, and the software was equally expensive. Windows NT and 95′ offered everything Mac didn’t. Cheaper hardware, better memory usage, cheap software, and lots of freeware available on the Internet. On a daily basis I urged the owners of that business to move away from Mac and to Windows 95.

In my opinion, Windows 95 & 98 were fantastic. In the early days of the Internet there was so much available for those systems. I ran Windows NT networks, worked with 95 & 98 clients, and found the operating systems to be fantastic. At the same time, it looked like Macintosh was in real trouble.

But a big shift occurred. After 98 there was ME. That was my next OS. And it was terrible. Drivers didn’t work, hardware incompatibilities cropped up, and I found myself spending more time dealing with glitches than using the Windows systems for work. If you spend 6 hours fixing the software, and 2 hours working, you’re really hurting productivity.

In 2002 my ex was having some really big troubles with her custom Dell Laptop loaded with Windows. She didn’t get what she paid for, and she’d spent well over $2500. Driver problems, video problems, and a system that served better as a paper weight than anything else. And oh yes, she was a tech professional as well.

I suggested checking into Macintosh again, as I heard the system was powered by a Unix operating system. Given her unix expertise I thought it might go well. So she picked up a Mac, and that’s when my change began. As I tinkered with her system and looked around I found it stable, easy to use, reasonable software, and found that Mac gave you everything you needed to be productive off the bat!

I bought my own system several weeks later.

5 years later I’m extremely pro Macintosh. I don’t work for them, get no income from them, but will happily advise readers to strongly consider them at their next PC purchase. Why do I continue to be so pro Mac? Here’s the list:

• They work.
• Plug & Play really is plug and play on a Mac.  In test after test while writing the Digital RV, new equipment used on the Mac took under 10 minutes to setup.  New equipment on a brand new Windows system often took much longer (sometimes into hours).
• Macs can now run a split system with Parallels, allowing you to run Mac & Windows at the same time.  If you HAVE to run Windows, you can.  Then when you want to enjoy your experience, just hop over to the Mac interface again.
• Mac includes all the software you need to be productive.  Windows, with multiple versions / levels, does not.  By the time you’re done loading software on your inexpensive laptop, you’ve surpassed a mid-range Mac setup.
• Mac is user friendly.  Period.
• 1 year on the road, 0 tech issues with my MacBook or IBook.  Several failures with my HP Windows XP system.

So, yes, there’s a Mac bias here at the Digital RV.  I’ll make no apologies.  I advise readers on what will work best for them while traveling.  My requirements are simple.  Devices need to work, add to the travel experience, take little space, do more than one thing, be easy to maintain, and not consume all of your time as you’re traveling not working in an office.  And Macintosh fits very well within my digital rv.  This Digital RVer wouldn’t have it any other way.

Does that mean I’ll never go with Windows again?  Absolutely not!  If a new stable system comes along from Windows again that meets all my requirements, I’d switch back.  So far though it seems that’s not in the cards, and Mac will remain in my Airstream for a while.

Several weeks ago I posted information regarding ripping DVD’s with Handbrake onto a Macintosh computer. That was a good start to get readers thinking about a space savings technique where you still can bring all of your entertainment with you, without consuming any additional space.

And only a few days ago, the first demo posting on ripping DVDs to hard drives was put up on The Digital RV Podcast. That demonstration took Mac owners through what I consider to be an extremely simple program, Handbrake.

Finally, today another video post has been put up at the Digital RV’s podcast site. The newest video demonstrates AOA DVD Ripper for Windows (see folks, I do use Windows too).

Now readers and viewers can see for themselves, DVD ripping is possible, and in many cases can save you a fair amount of space.

Personal Assesment on Ripping DVD’s and the available software today

Pulling video off of a DVD and popping it on your hard drive is pretty simple. It’s exceedingly simple on Macintosh, and not quite as simple on Windows. There’s no two ways about it, and that does not imply a bias toward Mac on this author’s part. I’ll get more into that whole concept in an upcoming post. In a relatively short amount of time, any user with basic computer skills can begin ripping DVDs and making a “soft copy library” of their favorite movies.

For Mac users, the choice is crystal clear. Go download a copy of Handbrake and have at it folks! You don’t need to search around for the perfect ripping software. It’s Handbrake. Why is Handbrake just so darned cool?

• It’s FREE
• Easy to use (watch the tutorial)
• Doesn’t choke on DVD lock codes.
• Formats the video for viewing on an IPod, but the video can still be displayed full screen on your Mac.
• It compresses the video very well, and if done right you can get a video to 1/10th the original size! Space savings indeed.

In the Windows world it’s not that straightforward. There are many software packages out there that can rip or copy DVD’s. Some will not function on DVDs with certain copyright codes. Others will function and rip the DVD, but their compression stinks and you’ll fill up your hard drive fast. Finally, others like AOA DVD Ripper do the job, and have other tools that you can use to further compress the video.

Several months ago I worked with a client who was trying to rip his DVD collection to his windows machine. He’d purchased a product at Best Buy, and paid over $100 for the package. In the end, the software went back to the store, as it kept choking on copyright codes on the DVDs. Well, didn’t work with all DVDs at all! That product was InterVideo DVD Copy 4. It claimed to copy DVDs to new DVDs, or to your hard drive. Well, apparently not all DVDs.

For readers of this site, I request your recomendations on your favorite ripping software. I could spend a fortune going through the “pay for products” that don’t do a great job ripping. So, if you know a great one, let me know and I’ll try it out and post a demo on the podcast site.

In the meantime, AOA DVD Ripper was a pretty decent ripper. I didn’t like the fact that IPod / PSP / MP4 features weren’t integrated into it. AOA does supply another product that will support that functionality, but wouldn’t it be nice to have all the features in one program?

Oh, wait, there is such a program. Handbrake for Mac….and it costs a whopping $0. Haven’t found anything comparable for Windows, even spending over $100.

The software is out there folks, help me find the best one available to pass along to readers and viewers everywhere.

Woah! This posting should stir up a pot that I should probably let sit. But of course, I’m not going to.

Off the bat, this is not an overall “Windows vs. Mac” post, ok? I’m focusing specifically on media center software, and where the two systems stand. In the end, I always go with systems that I find stable and functional overall. Not just based on one of many features that a computer is used for. Keep that in mind as you read (you’ll need to).

In Mac World’s most recent publication, February of 2006, the writers addressed this same topic. Page 65 of the publication summed up an interesting thought when it comes to a prepackaged media center. The title of the sidebar in Mac World was, “What Apple Could Learn from Microsoft.” Ouch.

That’s not to say Macintosh won’t make a good media center. It will make a great media center. The gap between Windows and Mac is simple. Currently there are many ways to pool all of your media into one easy to manage spot with Windows, and Mac is working it’s way up to that stage. Windows has been playing with their “Media Center Edition” for a few years, Mac is just getting into it at the moment.

In particular, Mac World points out that Windows Media Center Edition has the ability to pool all of your media resources in one spot. Macintosh can handle all of your media as well, but there is no 1 single over arching program that can tie it all together. Recently Mac launched Front Row, which is a stab at developing a single media center software, but it’s not close to how Win Media Center works.

For both Mac & Windows, users can get componenets that allow you to watch and record TV, view DVD’s, play and record music, and load photography. Both systems can do that. Where Windows has an edge is the fact that with Media Center, and other 3rd party vendors like SageTV, you can pool all of your media under one umbrella program.

If you’re currently a media junkie who’s looking for a system that can manage all of your media in one spot, then right now Windows might be the system for you. If you don’t mind managing your files a bit more, Windows or Mac will work well.

Personally, I have both Windows & Mac machines. I prefer using my Macs more. I find them more secure on the Internet, and more stable. But, if you’ve read my book you’ll know, using SageTV on Windows really made me like Windows again, and it’s been a while. Sage’s software on a Windows XP system really does a lot. And I find XP more stable than Windows Media Center. So, if you are looking for Windows to be your Media Center, skip the Win Media Center Edition. Grab a machine with XP professional and get yourself SageTV instead.

For the Mac users out there, don’t worry. You can still manage all your media today. And with the improvements to EyeTV 2, you’ll find TV viewing and recording to be easier than ever. I have a sneaking suspicion that Elgato will lead the way to a true Media Center Software for Macintosh. They’re almost there now. Keep watching for Elgato’s updates this year.

Once again, in the end both platforms can handle all of your media needs. The big difference is you can setup a “One Stop Shopping” scenario on Windows, and on Mac you’ll be using several applications. Splitting hairs really, until you try out each system and see how slick a total media interface is. Still, this year we’ll see many updates for both Windows & Macintosh Media. The race is on now! Everyon is getting into audio & video. The upcoming innovations will pay off big for all Digital RV’ers, so keep watching!

While at the Apple Store yesterday I came across the iGo everywhere130. This product is exactly what I’ve been looking for. I’m always looking for ways to cut down on what I carry along in my RV, and the iGo fits the bill.

The iGo is a power supply that will work with AC, DC, and Airplane power. In addition, it has plug adapters for most laptop manufacturers out there today! Finally, this model offers dual power. That means while you’re powering your laptop, you can also power a smaller digital device! Pretty slick!

The unit I picked up came with an IPod power adapter. But in addition to the IPod, the iGo can power many other small digital devices. It comes with adapters for many laptops, and the IPod, but other device plugs will cost you extra. Fortunately iGo will be happy to sell you adapters for almost anything.

With this one power supply I can now cut my mobile phone’s power supply out, the IPod power supply, my Canon’s charger, and probably a few other things I haven’t thought of yet. And with the laptop plugs I now have 1 power supply that can handle my Mac & HP when I’m boondocking and need to charge from DC. Looks like my little inverter will have a lot less to do! Maybe it can even stay home.

The unit lists for $149.00, however I purchased it for less. Shop the web before buying, because I’m sure you’ll find a lower price. To visit iGo click here. If you’d like to see the specific model I just picked up, click here.