You are currently browsing the Predictions category.

Traditional TV and the Scratching Record

February 18th, 2008

Last night, I scrambled home to get to my Tivo. I wanted to record the new The Simpsons episode. I made it to the television in my living room with about five minutes to spare. Then, it dawned on me. Why am I trying so hard to watch TV the old way? Traditional (non-live) television is dead to me.

I realized that it was futile for me to worry about what time a show airs and where I view it. I had pieces and parts of this already in my media consumption lifestyle, but now I have all the options at my discretion. Many years ago, I got Tivo. That took away the time factor, but it still land-locked me to the television in the living room. Two years ago, I got Slingbox, so I no longer needed to be in the house to access television — it works over the Internet. This year, I merged the two. A Tivo to record my shows together with a Slingbox that accesses them over the Internet. It’s neat, but requires plenty of know-how.

But, this rigged-up solution still relies fundamentally on video content. I don’t control that — no matter how hard I try, I just don’t have the time or energy to create my own television studio and distribution company. I tried, but it got to be too time consuming. I feel it is easier for the big companies to handle that responsibility.

So, why is traditional television now futile? The Internet, baby. Thanks to video-based, high-end websites with direct access to the studios and their content, I can get the same experience on-line. The only trade-off I make is HD (high definition), but sometimes content is just more desirable when it is convenient, not high quality. I don’t really care if Kitchen Nightmares is in HD if I can access it online and watch when, where, and what episode I choose.

Hulu.com did it for me. I realized last night that I can watch the latest version of the Simpsons online without Tivo or Slingbox rigged to my house. There are several other websites like it. iTunes is really making me curious lately too. It’s a relief because I no longer worry about the hardware configuration and focus on the content I want to view.

So, in the end, content wins. It always does.

Posted in Predictions | Permalink

Score One for IPTV

March 5th, 2007

Yesterday, I purchased a full-length feature film from iTunes. This was a limited release movie that I missed when it came out during the past summer. It cost $14 and took about an hour to download. I had no idea that this impulse buy would cause me to rethink the fundamental way that I consume video content. I used to think that my satellite was the only way to get quality movies and TV shows. However, looks like this is no longer the case.

I read a few weeks ago that users will choose convenience over quality when it comes to web technologies. Just look at the success of YouTube. Plus, video technologies are just now starting to get to the point where they actually look good. But, there is a lot of room for improvement. It seems to me that most people are accustomed to their computers only accessing fuzzy, graining, and choppy video. This is about to – or already is – changed.

I downloaded a movie (Goal! The Dream Begins) in no time. And, I have the slowest, cheapest, DSL on the market. I then turned on sharing from my PC (days are numbered on that old clunker – another story), powered up my MacBook’s Airport, plugged the DVI cable to the back of my HDTV, plugged the audio jack to my stereo speakers, and voila! Movie time.

I seriously watched a two hour downloaded movie on my family room television – technically, streaming from the computer in the den to the wi-fi on my laptop, to the TV in real time. John would call this “black magic.” The funny part was that I could barely tell the difference. I mean, if I watch a standard definition signal (non-HDTV), it basically looks like YouTube anyway. SD signals are really, really ugly on my HDTV. So, it is a low hurdle (I think I owe Joe a royalty for that one-liner).

iTunes streaming video over Wi-fi to my HDTV is quite elegant. Front Row looks slick. The sound effects are techie, and the quality is noticeably smooth. I kept waiting for it to choke, or for the signal to die. It never did. The only thing that felt off was the tiny remote. That did not feel like a television remote, but so what. It works.

This was a serious dose of the future. I love this sort of thing because it is the first taste of how things will work in the very near future. Now I am thinking about purchasing a Mac Mini to run permanently attached to my HDTV — get my Joost, iTunes, and YouTube streamlined into the family room. What an escape.

Posted in Predictions | Permalink

Re: Fw: Re: Fw: Fw: Re: Email

February 9th, 2007

I think email is great. I really do. But, sometimes I see what we, in the work place, are doing to this fine mode of communication. Emails are not for discussions or round table talks. They are meant to exchange data, move files, or send details that are more logically delivered in text.

I feel weird when I see an email subject line that reads, “Re:Fw:Re:Fw” and so on. I know some email clients, such as Gmail, handle this well and group them together. Most do not. But, I laugh when I picture all these people trying to communicate with each other via this crazy email daisy chain–when the result is just some weird version of Pong-via-email. I see your “re:” and I raise you a “fw:.” Today, I saw an email Pong with 13 hits. How on earth is this efficient?

To me, I think we are spoiled by email in the workplace. It is too easy to send an email to a large group than to assemble the people and talk face-to-face. I hate email. I love email. Think this will ever change, or are we all doomed to forever play a reply, forward, delete game with messages. Email anyone? I’ll serve first.

Posted in Predictions | Permalink

Get Social, Tivo and iTunes

December 27th, 2006

I get all of my television from Tivo and all of my music from iTunes. When I say all, I mean all. Both of these companies have me, the majority of my family, and some, if not all of my friends in their command. The content they serve is fiercely social, extremely viral, dynamic, and deeply personal. If you went to an Apple store during the past two weeks, you know what I mean. Frenzy.

So, why do neither of these services have a social network?

Ever had a conversation with a friend that began with, “have you seen that show…” or “have you heard of that band…” or “did you see the episode last night?”

It just seems to me that both Tivo and iTunes have a golden goose sitting right in front of them, and they must know it. Both systems already have integrated ties to the Internet, and both promote (if not beg) users to try new material. Tivo suggests new shows, iTunes tells you what others have bought similarly to you, and both podcast. So, how about a social net?

I participate in many social network websites, and I am amazed at how many niche markets are served by such. But, why don’t some of the mainstream (are Tivo and iTunes mainstream?) companies jump on board with something bold?

It seems like the latest enhancements for Tivo and iTunes focus on how they can get content to me faster and then manage it easily. I appreciate that—seriously, I do. It is the core of the product. Managing and getting content is the primary responsibility, but imagine if they both had a social network. Social networks give content and services a soul, life, and energy.

My imaginary, socially networked Tivo

When I hit the “Tivo” button on the peanut (remote controller), I get a list of my recorded shows, links to podcasts and streamed content, pictures and music networked from my laptop/computer and the Internet (Flickr would be nice), some other web access such as weather, movies, scores, etc… and finally, a list of my friends/family’s shared season passes, favorites, and suggested shows. We could submit recommendations to each other, chat after (or even during) the show or event. I could also make friends with other people who like certain shows, or just see what is most popular. Also, Tivo would let me know if my family/friends watched the show I watched – so, we can talk about it offline without ruining the surprise. My remote control blinks when I have received a recommendation or if one of my friends liked something I recommended to them.

My imaginary, socially networked iTunes

I log in to the service and instantly see to what others like me are listening, the last tracks my friends/family purchased, recommend music and TV shows, and can buy content for someone else. Also, it shares with Tivo. “Send to your Tivo” is an option. Or, I can send content to a friend. If they buy it and/ or others like it, I get credit. I can build a wishlist of songs not in the system and as they become available I am alerted. The longer I wait, the more credit iTunes gives me for my patience. My friends can add to my list, and if I buy a certain amount from a recommended list, it gives me credit.

Maybe this will all come true when we each have fiber running to our homes. Once we get 50 mbps and beyond, the limitations will change. The Internet is so amazingly social right now, and it seems that this is not a temporary trend. So, why is it that my television and music are not yet with it?

Posted in Predictions | Permalink

Motorola Q Road Story

August 23rd, 2006

Imagine live television streaming out to the Internet from your actual home living room, beamed to a mobile device, while speeding down a stretch of rural highway. Sounds like something from the future, right?

I did this in August 2006.

I recently upgraded my mobile life to the new Motorola Q. (View post). It is an amazing device, and it has completely changed the way I get email, text, and stay connected to the network. But, it is not merely the device that fascinates me, but the fact that it represents a new chapter in true network mobility — a milestone in personal technology.

Just when I thought I had seen it all with this device, along comes a situation that blew my mind – a unique and distinctive glimpse of the not too distant future of mobile technology. Forget what you know about email, texting, television, and mobility.

Truly Mobile Television

During a 17 hour car trip to northern Canada from Chicago, I decided to test what my Motorola Q could really do — truly mobile, and far from any tethered laptop. So, I launched the Slingbox remote television application that I installed. A Slingbox is a piece of hardware that allows you to stream your actual home television anywhere on the Internet. You can change channels and all the other features you would normally have while sitting on your couch at home. Slingbox has a mobile version that sends this stream to your Motorola Q (or, technically, any device running Windows Smartphone)

We were somewhere in rural Wisconsin – about 10 miles north of Rice Lake and heading north on highway 57. It was 11:00 at night. The Slingbox connected, and video started streaming to my Motorola Q. As Slingbox does, the video improved as it found the best pathway to me on the network.

I actually watched a one-hour television show on my Motorola Q while speeding north on a highway in Wisconsin. I could not believe how good it looked – definitely watchable. Next thing I knew we had arrived for a rest stop in Superior.

The Infrastructure For This to Happen

The cable network beams its signal to my satellite provider, they send it into space, my home satdish brings it into my living room, Slingbox takes the signal from my television, streams that signal to my router out to the Internet, to my mobile phone service provider, they locate me in the network, then the signal goes to the cell tower in Wisconsin, radio transmits to my Q, and then to my eyes and ears.

Mind blowing. If I can do this now, what will it be like next year, in two years…in five?

Posted in Predictions | Permalink

« Previous Entries