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World of WarCraft on my PSP !!!! |
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July 22, 2005
 Thanks to a little app called Portable VNC for the PSP, you can now remote desktop into your Mac from your PSP. So.... for me, just playing with the OS is not that much fun [yes it is cool, but games are better :) ]. Let's see what it is like to play W.o.W.
MMM..... well you can't :) It is way too slow at about 1 - 1/2 fps. You really can't do anything. I first tried walking around one of the big towns, but with the low frame rate, by the time I stopped moving, I was nowhere near the place I wanted to be. So I was thinking I could use it to farm the auction house. But again, it was just to cumbersome. After much thought, I could only think of ONE use: if I was waiting to get into an instance and wanted to chill out in my living room instead of at my computer, I could glance at my PSP to see when it was time to go and play.
A little video to show the fps one the PSP
http://macovermatter.com/archives/MVI_5056_sm2.AVI
By now, some of you might be asking how well does this work with the OS? Well, not bad—besides the fact you can't see your mouse :). Other than that, you can see and play with the OS just fine.
  
What you will need to do this:
A PSP with firmware 1.5 ( not 1.5.1 and 1.5.2)
portablevnc On the PSP
A Mac running OSXvnc
How to:
1. Install portablevnc on the PSP. It is very simple to do. Just follow the instructions.
2. Open up OSXvnc.app and give your Mac a name and a password. Then hit start.
Yeah, that is about it!! The only thing that was a little out of the ordinary was on my PSP, I had to set the network setting by hand. PortableVNC does not work well with DHCP.
Posted by macomadmin at 05:57 PM
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On the 2nd day after Turkey Day you should Give a Digital Camera |
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CONTROL: Replaytv and Mac home video Server!!!! (Part 3) |
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November 23, 2004
This is Part 2: Setting up your mac to talk to your ReplayTV.
Now that you have all the Hardware from (part 1) and a connection set up from (part 2) you are ready to set up the software.
This Post is a half how to and half a software review.
What you will need for this part:
With Both your mac and your ReplayTV on the same network it is time to get the software working. Start by going to www.DVArchive.org and download DV Archive and install it.
(Please keep in mind that some of the following came from their Read Me document and some are my own suggestions and thoughts.)
Getting Started
To use DVArchive, you will need Java 1.4.2 or later, which itself requires Mac OS X 10.3.1 or later. If you have Mac OS 10.2.3 through 10.2.8 and Java 1.4.1 installed, you will be able to use DVArchive, but it is unsupported and may not perform as expected. To get the latest Java for your system, use Software Update (in System Preferences) and whatever is current will be available for download.
---- In order to make this program useful, the biggest thing you will need to set up is the following:
Video Playback on your Mac
A popular feature of DVArchive is the ability to play back its files locally or streamed from your ReplayTV or another DVArchive. To do this in Mac OS X, they recommend QuickTime 6.1 or later with Apple's MPEG-2 Playback Component ($20, purchase and download from here; or included with Final Cut Pro and DVD Studio Pro).
After all that is set up:
Once that is finished, the app will open a window. In this window, on the right, you will see all the ReplayTVs on the network and your computer's media (if you have not downloaded video to your computer, this will be empty). If you look under ReplayTVs, you will see all the shows it has recorded. In this window, you will also see tabs/buttons at top. Most buttons are self-explanatory.
If you just want to watch your shows on your Mac from the ReplayTV, just Control click on a show on the left and select Play. If you would like to download a show, Control click on a show on the left and select Download.
How I use this software
I have DVArchive set up on my home server so that it is always running in the background. I have set up the app to download nightly all new videos that have been recorded during the day. Doing this helps me keep all the videos I want and/or burn them to a DVD to share with friends or watch on long plane rides.
From time to time I do use the remote control feature. this will let you control your ReplayTV from your computer. I use my laptop or may Mac Tablet it is like having big remote control that is using 801.11b (WiFI) instead of IR.
My Thoughts:
If it was not for DVArchive, ReplayTV would not be worth getting. The program is well made and, for what is does, is very stable and simple to use.
Come soon: Come soon: Part 4, How to make a DVD from ReplayTV videos.
Websites that can help you:
http://www.macreplaytv.com/
http://www.dvarchive.org/phpBB2/
http://www.planetreplay.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=15
Posted by macomadmin at 02:32 AM
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CONTROL: You do not need a BMW to have a ipod in your car! |
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November 20, 2004
 I love cool hack check this one out.
This tutorial will show you how to install an iPod into an RX-8 using the "CD Player Hack". This involves removing the radio, and soldering an audio cable into it. Then you put it all back together, and pop in a CD containing 80 minutes of pure silence. The radio will only pick up your new AUX-Input when a CD is playing.
http://www.whatsmyip.org/ipodrx8/
Posted by macomadmin at 02:44 AM
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CONTROL: Dead iSight—iFight, iMight win??? |
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November 14, 2004
 What do I say to a friend that hands me a dead iSight and asks me to fix it, even though I have never opened one before? "OK!!! I will gladly crack it open and 'fix it'!"
My friend's iSight would turn on, give him 2 sec. of video, and then shut off. So he asked me if I could look at it .
As I was playing with the on/off switch, it sounded like it had a piece of sand in it. Sounds like it is time to take that thing apart. I love taking Apple stuff apart. It's like a Rubik's Cube.
Time to Dive In
Is it time to admit that I have no idea what I am doing?
I started by taking out the 2 small under screws.
Next I had to pull out the little white plastic piece on the bottom. I discovered that in order to do this, I first had to pull the front lens a little. to make a big enough gap to fit a screw driver in and pop the plastic piece out.
 
With that out, I was able to pull on the front lens and slip the camera out of its metal shell.
Once it was out, I still had to take off the lens to get the sand pebble out. Looking around the lens, I found three more screws that needed to be removed.
Once the screws were removed, I could not find any sand. Ummmmm... well it sounded like it was there. Now that I have it apart, let's see if it works. After plugging it into my Powerbook, it looked like it worked fine. Time to put it back together, but not before I take photos to show you all the insides (see below). Now with it all back together, it works and it sounds like the sand is gone, but I still can't find it.
More Photos
    
Posted by macomadmin at 07:06 PM
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CONTROL: Replaytv and Mac home video Server!!!! (Part 2) |
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November 07, 2004
This is Part 2: How to Set up the connection
Now that you have all the Hardware from (part 1) you are ready to set up your connection.
hardware I used for this part:
- 1 ReplayTV
- 1 G4 400mhz
- 50 Feet Cat 5
- 2 Cat 5 jacks for the wall mount units
- Wall mount unit
Why not WIFI?
This is a good question. You can do this with something like AirPort Express. AirPort Express would be a lot simpler to set up and would extend your Apple Airport range. I personally didn't do WIFI, as you'll see in the next question.
Why HardWire?
First thing I looked at was the ethernet specs on the ReplayTV and the Mac. The Replay has an Ethernet port 10/100Mbps and my Mac has the same. I wanted to transfer the files as fast as possible due to the file size of one hour of video which is about 3 gig. The second thing I looked at was if I could pull the wire though the walls in my house. In my house, it was simple because I have an attic to pull the wire up through. If you have a house that would be hard to wire or if you find this step hard, you should just get yourself an AirPort Express. 54Mbps is not bad, but it will just take longer to pass the files from the ReplayTV to the Mac.
The Connection
Time to do the hard work. I started with the jack in the living room. I already had cable and phone to this wall, so I thought it would be the best place to add the ethernet jack.
I took off the wall plate and removed the wires from it. I then took the coax cable and attached some strong string to the end of it. Then I went to the attic and pulled the coax up though the wall. Once I got to the end of the coax, I attached the Cat5 (ethernet cable) to the end of the coax. Now I went back down to the living room and pulled on the string to pull the coax and the ethernet cable back down the wall. I now had both the ethernet cable, the coax cable, and the phone cable coming out of the hole in the wall.
On to the Jacks
I went with Leviton Jacks system becouse I find it simple to use and upgrade. Their system is a very plug-and-play approach to wall mount wiring. I stared by snapping into the wall plate the three connecters I would need (Phone, Cat 5 , Coax). From there, it was a matter of connecting the cables to the snap-in jacks. This system gives the tool to help with the Cat 5 and phone jack but not the coax (it should already have a connecter on it).
Time to attach the wall plate back to the wall and connect the coax, the phone, and the ethernet cable that will go to the ReplayTV. (Note I would not plug the ethernet cable to the ReplayTV until after you have finished the other end of the in-wall wiring.)
With the living room finished, I went to the computer room and found another jack that I could do the same setup as I did in the living room. The only difference this time is that I used the other end of the Cat 5 cable from the living room. Now we have our very own Cat 5 connection from the living room to the computer room.
Testing Time:
For the true geeks out there, get out your ethernet testers and go to town. For the rest of you, try using two computers and see if they can talk to one another. If the cables work, you are all set for PART 3 (coming soon). If the cable does not work, I would first look at the jack and check to see if all the wires are set up correctly. After checking that, if you still have a problem, check the Cat 5 cable.
Coming soon: Part 3 software and the Mac!!! (Finally we get on a Mac. This has to be the longest thing I have posed without using the words Mac, OSX, Apple..... ok, now I feel better.)
Posted by macomadmin at 11:55 AM
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CONTROL: Get your music back from your iPod |
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CONTROL: ReplayTV and Mac home video Server!!!! (Part 1) |
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October 15, 2004
Looking for a way to serve and store video with a Mac let me show you how i did it.
Part 1
Matter I used:
HARD MATTER
- 1 ReplayTv
- 1 G4 400mhz
- 50 Feet Cat 5
- 2 Cat 5 jacks for the wall mount unit
- Wall mount unit
SOFT MATTER
That I wanted to do:
Have all my shows that my PVD recored in my living room backed up on one of my extra macs in a different room so I can Burn then later to DVD or just watch them. I stared by looking in to all the PVR on the market and the only one with a build-in ethernet jack was the ReplayTV.
More coming Soon......
Posted by macomadmin at 02:11 PM
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CONTROL: Screen Spanning on a iMac G5 |
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October 14, 2004
Apple will not let you do it, someone will. Screen Spanning Doctor is a app that lets you use 2 moniters on mac Including the new imac G5 that apple has set to only suport one moniter. I think that the only way a computer is usable is to have 2 monitors on it. You get a lot of desktop space to hold all your open apps and still be able to surf. Macworld.com just posted a how-to on this app.
Check it out: http://www.macworld.com/weblogs/editors/2004/10/imacscreenspanning/index.php
Posted by macomadmin at 08:54 PM
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