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Contact info: | Feed: feeds.feedburner.com/geekcast | Website: TheGeekcast.com | geekcast@gmail.com | Skype & Gizmo: Geekcast | 206-98-geek-1 | Show notes: send blank e-mail to geekcastpodcast-subscribe@yahoogroups.com |
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Items of Note:
A new episode of Podcast Nation is out! Check it out at http://www.podcastnation.blogspot.com
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Tech news:
Record Labels fight for higher iTunes pricing. The one-price model that iTunes has adopted could be replaced with a more complex structure that prices songs by popularity. A hot new single, for example, could sell for $1.49, while a golden oldie could go for substantially less than 99 cents. Music executives who support Mr. Jobs say the higher prices could backfire, sending iTunes’ customers in search of songs on free, unauthorized file-swapping networks.
Signs of conflict over pricing issues are increasingly apparent. This month, Apple started its iTunes service in Japan without songs from the two major companies – Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group – leaving artists like Avril Lavigne, Beyoncé and Rob Thomas out of the catalog because the companies refused to license their music to iTunes, executives involved in the talks said. That gap in the Japanese music market, the world’s second biggest, is considered a harbinger of what may await American consumers as the contracts that record companies have with Apple in the United States come up for renewal early next year.
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How To:
This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
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Ask A Geek:
This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast.
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Hack: Burn TiVo shows to DVD using TiVo Desktop 2.2
TiVo has announced a new version of their TiVo Desktop software, which has some cool features such as copying video from your computer to your TiVo. The downside to upgrading is that included with the software, is a blacklist that doesn’t allow you to break the DRM on TiVo shows anymore. With a little help though, that can easily change.
The normal way to break TiVo encryption is to use Dr. DivX, which will read the .tivo file and encode it to a normal DivX file that you can edit in any program. When installing version 2.2, this process is no longer valid. Here’s how to get around it:
First, download a hex editior such as Hex Workshop. Then install the TiVo 2.2 software. Once this is done, open the following file in the hex editior: C:\Program Files\Common Files\TiVo Shared\DirectShow\TiVoDirectShowFilter.dll. and all the code will appear. You will want to search for the word “divx” and also TMPGEnc for the Tsunami MPEG encoder. Once you find these items, type over one letter in the words so it’s spelled wrong. After this is done, save out the file and you’re all set. Dr. DivX will have no issues past this point.
The TiVo software is great, but please use the above information with caution because it is most likely illegal.
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The geek’s view: CoverFlow
CoverFlow is a fantastic OsX application that allows you to browse your iTunes library by album. Utilizing a sleek yet minimal interface, you can find any album on your computer visually. CoverFlow takes all your stored album art and displays them as record sleeves, emulating finding music in an old collection.
While graphically intensive and still in a public demo, CoverFlow is fun to use and can customize its list based on smart-playlist-like features so only the albums you want to see are displayed. On top of this, it’s smooth to use and just plain old fun. CoverFlow is free and can be downloaded at http://www.steelskies.com/coverflow/HomePage.html
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