Archive for the ‘Video Pod’ Category

This week for TVazine, we go through a review that I thought was all but lost. A couple months ago, a hard drive crashed and with it - a few of the video reviews I did early on that were not published yet. However, I do back up systems, and found that this video was saved in a backup I did the month before.

It was a copy that I already edited down, so I couldn’t put it into 720 format, but I was able to do a little tweaking on it. I also am playing with some new title intros, so let me know if you like the new intro.

In the meantime, we review the Fretlight guitar - a special guitar that connects to the PC via USB, then lights up the fretboard to direct you on how to play certain songs. This guitar is great for learning and comes with software to help out.

We look at the guitar and where it stands as a musical instrument and a teaching tool.

When I went to Las Vegas in January, I thought I would be going back to cover events. I didn’t think it would be so soon. But I don’t mind - a little hop over to the city that never sleeps for a few days of fun in the sun.

Except I will have a reason for going to the big city. I will be working with Andy McCaskey and Kara Karsten again for the HP Tech Forum Expo 2009. We will be covering the floor - CES style while also setting up one - on - one interviews with various vendors.

I will also be doing wrap up videos all week for the Geekazine channel and TVazine. So I thought I would start early by showing you what it takes to get ready for an event like this.

Andy will be getting the serious CES gear from Todd Cochrane, so I will have to make sure I have the little stuff covered. We will be doing the Backchannel content like we did at CES, so I will be bringing the AIPTEK camera. I will also be Podcasting my regular show on Tuesday, which means I’ll have to take the Blue USB mic with me and other various accoutremon.

In this weeks video, I get to do two things:

1. Show off the new studio space for future video
2. Show you all the items I am planning to take with me to cover an event like this.

It should be a great time. I will be on a plane and in Vegas by Sunday night. So that means I have a lot of work to do before then.

Oh, wait. I have a lot of work to do… Well, here is the video.

VPC and VMWare are two great programs that allow me to do a lot. Windows, Linux and in some cases, Mac (although there are still legal issues with that). VPC is great because then you can have your computer loaded up with more than one Operating system and be able to get work done.

I have installed Ubuntu on my Windows machines, but when I heard that Windows 7 will have a VPC-XP feature; I thought to myself - “Can XP be run in a Virtual environment within Ubuntu?” Then I thought even more - “Can Windows 7 run in an Ubuntu environment?”

My question got answered quickly - Even better is that it was a program that worked similar to VPC.

VirtualBox OSE is a Virtual PC program that works in the x86 environment. It is a program developed by Sun and can be installed in Windows, Mac and Linux environments. Best part is it’s a breeze to set up and use.

Therefore, I went on with my challenge: install Windows 7 on Ubuntu.

Windows 7 on Ubuntu

The following video shows how I did it, the difficulties (which were none) and the end result.

Blue Mic

This week we review the Blue Snowball Microphone. It is a powerful USB microphone from Blue that offers a functional mic over USB in a good price range.

Blue offers many different microphones for commercial and professional use. If you’ve watched Todd Cochrane and the Geek News Central Podcast from uStream, you will have seen their mics. They have been used by Podcasters all the way to reporting from the Newsroom on a few Network news shows.

If the Snowball is too big, you can also check out the Snowflake: a travel USB mic - or the Eyeball: with a built in Webcam.

Also check out the YouTube Version of the Geekazine Review

This weeks review we look at MP3 FM transmitters. Apple is rumored to have an FM Transmitter in the newest version of iPhone. We talk about the likeliness of that, while also talk about some great alternatives.

• iRock
• VR3
• iTrip Auto Universal Plus
• iSimple Media Wire

The other day I decided to play with the Beta version of CamStudio. The new beta version seems to be more stable and very useful. I like it a lot.

What I decided to do was record this week’s Bitstrips - a how to model. I created a simple face on the site. However, I used a method a lot of Bitstrippers are applying. It’s called the “Moon Method”, or what I like to call “Moonwalking”. Basically, you use the Moon Prop to create art.

The best part about this program is that you sometimes have to find ways around the art to create what you want. A good example was last weeks’ Segway article. And of course, this weeks Moonwalking comic.

It’s not much the picture as it is the accompanying video. The background music is by a band called “Sunspot“. It’s my favorite SS song - Scott Bakula. Enjoy!

This week’s review is for the CastGrabber - an internet appliance that takes valid RSS feeds and uploads podcasts to your MP3 player. This video shows you a little about how the CastGrabber works. I also talk about the good and the bad - well, more of a wishlist to this Standalone Podcast downloader.

One great feature of the CastGrabber is the fact you can connect most any type of MP3 player and get your podcasts. I connected an iPod, then a couple different generic MP3 players. Even my 64 Meg Creative MP3 player from 2002 worked like a champ!

Price tag may be a bit much and I wished it had not only wireless, but some other items I talk about in the video. Nonetheless, it’s a great “Set it and forget it” type of item.

Here is the video review for the Cast Grabber.

When we were in Vegas at CES, we ran into a company called the Web Around. They specialized in a Nylon disc you can place on the back of your chair. The idea is if you have to do a web cast or video call, you can place this item behind you so the other party cannot see what is in the background. On the same token, the background can’t do anything, either.

The Web Around is $29.95 and comes in 3 colors, it’s Nylon based and can have a logo printed on it. It’s easy to set up and put away - that is, unless you are trying to do it on the video, then you have to fumble with it. Best part is you might just want to get it for an extra privacy filter for work. If your WebAround is up, you are working.

If you would like to have an item reviewed, please let me know!

Had to work on a laptop, so I thought I would show you all how you can remove a Hard drive from the laptop.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 57:30 — 26.4MB)

New ustream PC - Website Changes - Podcast Awards - Jeri Ellsworth - Garlin Gilchrist II - Tech-Mas

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It’s been a while since we did a video pod. This week I am working on putting a new uStream computer together. Because of this I thought I would record some of the techie stuff I am doing to get this up and running.

In the first video, we show you how to remove some of the Thermal Paste on the processor. In the second video, we install the processor, put on new Thermal Paste and install the Heat Sink.

Part I

Part II
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