The Geekcast #179 – A Chat with Phil Zaninni of Venti Pixel
Posted on : 13-01-2010 | By : Aaron | In : Episodes
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Items of Note: On today’s episode, we welcome Phil Zaninni! Phil is half of the brains behind Venti Pixel http://ventipixel.com/, an iPhone developer company that’s created the translation app DoubleSpeak and the game FlameWars.
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Geek This Week:
Phil: Venti Pixel and the apps they develop.
Aaron: I un-DRM’d my iTunes library using Requiem. Fantastic program that does exactly what it was designed to do, with no effort. Totally awesome.
Gozer: E-68 error. Switching the hard drive f’d up my new xbox according to:
http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=484726
I also had unnecessary things attached to my xbox.
Also saw Avatar and Up. Both Fantastic films.
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Tech and Gaming News:
HUGE: Google Considers Pulling Out of China in the Name of Free Speech
In a lengthy blog post today, Google announced that it would no longer censor its Chinese search engine, even if it means pulling out of China entirely. This comes in the wake of a wide-ranging attack on its infrastructure targeting Chinese human rights activists.
In the post, Google outlined in rather striking detail a “highly sophisticated and targeted attack” that occurred last month, targeting around 20 companies. In its investigation, the search giant found that the attackers’ primary objective was accessing Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. It also found that dozens of other Gmail accounts owned by human rights activists worldwide were compromised, most likely due to phishing scams or malware.
Google wouldn’t say it, but implications are that the Chinese government had something to do with these attacks.
As a result of the attacks, Google has decided to reassess its presence in China. The Chinese government and Google have fought over censorship before, but currently the search engine does block certain results (such as images of the Tiananmen Square massacre).
Now Google’s making it clear that it won’t comply with China’s demands any longer. Here’s the key paragraph from the Google post:
“These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered–combined with the attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the web–have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China. We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.”
Google has taken a very public stand against censorship, albeit one that is years overdue. How this series of events plays out could not only affect Google and the tech community, but global politics as a whole.
http://mashable.com/2010/01/12/google-china-attack/
Cool CES Shhhtuff
Panasonic blows it out with 3D Blu-ray deck, HDTVs, channels and $21k camcorder
Had enough of the CES barrage? Nah. Panasonic just cut loose a few new releases of its own, with the highlight of the bunch being the planet’s first integrated Full HD 3D camcorder. Dubbed a “professional” device, the camcorder won’t be available to order until April, and it’s expected to make the filming of 3Dcontent easier due to having the camcorder itself, the lenses, camera head and a twin memory card recorder smashed together in a single body. Users will also find stereoscopic adjustment controls on the twin-lens, solid state-based system, and we’re told that it’ll automatically recalibrate itself sans the need for any external equipment. ‘Course, the $21,000 MSRP is apt to turn away most everyone not being financed by a movie house, but hey, at least we’re fairly certain it’ll be reduced to a few bills by 2012.
In related news, Panny is also partnering with DirecTV to launch a trio of dedicated 3D channels starting in June, and the two are already in talked with AEG, CBS, Fox Sports, HDNet, MTV, NBC Universal and TBS to develop additional 3D programming that’ll debut between 2010 to 2011.
Oh, and you’ll obviously need a new setup to view said content, and that’s where Panny comes in (again). The outfit unleashed a new range of 3D-capable (thanks, RealD!) Viera plasma HDTVs and Blu-ray 3D players, and all it takes to enjoy mind-melting 3D content in the comfort of your abode is “a stylish and lightweight pair of active-shutter glasses.”
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/06/panasonic-blows-it-out-with-3d-blu-ray-deck-hdtvs-channels-and
CES: LG’s flagship Blu-ray player skips 3D, rips CDs
LAS VEGAS–All the focus is on 3D in the home theater space, but LG appears content to take a wait-and-see approach to the new 3D Blu-ray format. Instead of getting on the bandwagon, LG has gone in a different direction with its new flagship Blu-ray player, the BD590, which includes all the features that made the BD390 a hit, plus a 250GB hard drive that can be used to rip your music collection and store photos. Let’s take a quick look at its feature set.
Key features of the LG BD590:
250GB built-in hard drive, capable of storing music, photos, and videos transferred via USB
Can rip CDs directly to the hard drive, with metadata automatically handled by Gracenote
Online streaming media services include Netflix, Vudu, CinemaNow, YouTube, Pandora, Picasa, AccuWeather
Purchased Vudu movies can be stored directly on the hard drive
Built-in Wi-Fi
DLNA-compliant, allowing you to stream music, photos, and videos from a connected PC
No release date or pricing announced
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-31045_1-10426031-269.html?tag=mncol
Boxee Box interface demo
QWERTY RF remote, dual-core Tegra 2 in there it’s time for a little interface demo with founder Avner Ronen. It ran Hulu in the browser, Avner told engadget that the built-in browser IDs itself as essentially standard Mozilla. — the interface was lightning fast, the remote’s keyboard felt great, and Facebook / Twitter integration, which mines your feeds for videos posted by your friends and displays them on the home page. Avner tells us he thinks D-Link will be “aggressive” with that under-$200 price point when the Box launches in Q2, and there’ll be tons of content partners at launch.
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/08/boxee-box-interface-demo-video/
Skype HD: 720p videocalling from PCs or directly through LG & Panasonic HDTVs
Skype has already made an impact on the home phone, mobiles and PC desktops and now it’s taking on the living room. LG and Panasonic are already lined up to deliver new HD webcams for their internet connected plasma and LCD HDTVs that will enable living room-to-living room calling in 720p. With support for the service’s standard features like free Skype-to-Skype calling, voicemail, receiving inbound calls and more, using the TV to make calls should be just as easy as we’re used to. PC users haven’t been left behind with 720p HD streaming built into the latest client and new webcams on the way from faceVsion and In Store Solutions. Like the ones planned for the TVs, they handle video processing onboard so even older computers or underpowered netbooks can support HD streaming without bursting into flames.
2010 Project Natal launch and Xbox Game Room leaked in CES interview
Robbie Bach, President of the Entertainment & Devices Division has been talking up two things lately, Natal and The first of which is Project Natal which adds full-body interaction to the game console. The news? It’s looking like 2010 really will be the year said product hits the shelves, and it’s seeming more and more likely that the well-known Natal moniker will stick for retail. The other bit is a so-called Xbox Game Room, which is “supposed to bring back that retro fun to gaming.”
Check this out on xbox, looks like a custom 80′s arcade.
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/06/2010-project-natal-launch-and-xbox-game-room-purportedly-leaked/
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Test a Geek: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast
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Open Source Software: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast
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Hack: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast
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The Geek’s View: This segment will return on a future episode of The Geekcast
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