Archive for the 'Television' Category

A whole lot of TV… in the new

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on July 6, 2008
in Interesting, Media, Movies, Technology and Television
. Comments

Recently, I’ve been watching a lot of TV shows.  Shows like 30 Rock, Eureka, The Office.  A whole heaping helping of shows that I’ve been told are good, but just haven’t watched for one reason or another.

Turns out that I really like them.  So, I decided that instead of watching them on a TV or getting the DVDs from Netflix, I would just watch them on my HTPC.  The first three seasons of The Office, I watched on Netflix’s Instant Player and the fourth, I watched on Hulu.com.  The first season of 30 Rock, I watched on Netflix and bought and downloaded the second season from Amazon Unbox.  I got the first season of Eureka from Amazon Unbox and am working on it as I type.

So, how many of you are slowly or even quickly moving to an Internet-based television experience?

If you could pay $2 per episode for all of the shows that you watch on a regular basis, would it be more expensive or cheaper than what you are paying now for cable or satellite service?  What would you think about a system like that?  Would HD be a must?  Should HD content be more expensive or the same?

Personally, I would love a system like that and I think that it would be less expensive than what we are paying now for satellite, but truthishly, I haven’t crunched the numbers.  I think that HD content should be the same price as standard def content.  Nowadays, every major TV show is shot in HD and then conformed to the old SD standards, so there isn’t any extra work needed to produce HD.  I think there is just this feeling of “privilege” that is surrounding and staining the true, blu potential of HD content.

Yep, that missing ‘e’ was intentional.  That’s for you, Kody.  ;)

Nope, not gonna talk about it.

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on June 10, 2008
in Apple, Cell Phones and Television
. Comments

I’m sure many of you are expecting me to gush all over the iPhone 3G. Yes, I love it. I watched the keynote from WWDC. I plan on getting one on July 11. However, I do have a problem.

That problem? AT&T. They don’t have any adjusted plans for the new iPhone. They aren’t selling any as it is. They don’t have any. There is only one iPhone now and it is the iPhone 3G. Get up on it and release those plans. I don’t want to hear rumors anymore. I want facts. I want to see the FamilyTalk iPhone plans. AT&T, get on it.

Second thing I want to mention is that The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are finally on Hulu.  That is the coolest.  Now I get the only two shows I would watch Comedy Central for and don’t have to watch the crappy network.  That is good.

The Future of Television

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on May 8, 2008
in Computers, Media, Opinion, Technology, Television and future
. Comments

As some of you may know, I am a Broadcasting major at University of Central Missouri in mid-west Missouri.  That’s right, I’m in the mid-west of the Mid-West.  Well, you should also know that I am a geek.  I mean… look at that list of social networks.  What that geekiness really means is, I like the Internet.  I’ve always liked it, but when I started working for Niche Productions, Inc. in Jefferson City, MO, I fell in love with media.  I changed my life around, dropped Computer Engineering at UMR (now Missouri S&T), and moved to Warrensburg to start an undergrad degree in Broadcast Media. Then, I found out there were these things called podcasts.  I love them.  This got me thinking.  A lot of thinking.  Where is this podcasting thing going to go?

This is when I developed my theory of the future of television.  The Internet is becoming such an increasingly important part of our lives.  The content available on the ‘net is astounding.  There is a lot of it.  A LOT.  User generated content, the ability to produce your own series, is more and more available, thanks to sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler, Revver, and the like.  A lot of that content is bad, but also, a lot is good.  Once we start moving to a more ‘net based viewer, I feel that the production values on a lot of shows will skyrocket along with their budgets.  Never before were we at such an opportunity for a Media Revolution.

The future of television?  I think it will have to change or die.  In the next ten years, the current model of television will be gone or at least severely crippled.  We are already seeing this in the structure of a season for many shows.  Viewable media will have changed into something we can’t exactly know, but I do know that it will involve the Internet and be at least somewhat interactive.  The ability to download and watch a show whenever you want.  Sounds a lot like a DVR, I know, but an Internet-based model will not restrict you to time slots.  The show will be sitting there, waiting for you to decide to watch it.

Some of you may be saying, “But I hate watching stuff on my computer monitor.”  I say back to you that you will be watching your content on a television.  Soon, there will be a blurring of monitor and television into the same entity.  You will sit down on your couch, check your email and watch a couple of your favorite shows.  Some of us do this already, but I will admit, the current system is… annoying.  The traditional keyboard/mouse system will have to change into something smaller, compact, capable of controlling several devices at once, and is easy to type and navigate on a computer interface.  Perhaps something like a haptic touch screen universal remote combined with the pointer capability of the Wii Remote.  Something you point at the screen to point and click, but also type on when necessary.

Regardless, the current broadcasting model will change.  I believe that instead of broadcasting shows, we will be receive Internet access.  Maybe not from the broadcasters, but wireless nonetheless.  Gone will be the days of tethered Internet.  Take your notebook or cellphone anywhere and access the web just as if you were at home.  Your computer attached to your TV will use that same wireless connection.  This way, the sets of eyes on your content isn’t restricted to the home, those eyes can be anywhere.  Able to reach anyone, anywhere, whenever they want.  Having access to all eyes all the time is a broadcaster’s dream.

Once we break down the current broadcasting model and broadcasters stop looking at the Internet as a rival, but rather a resource for distribution, we may see a Media Revolution that will take the bubble off Web 2.0 and move us past into waters unknown.

Are we mired in the current broadcast model forever, will there be a change, or will something completely different happen?

I will keep trying

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on April 9, 2008
in Opinion, School, Self Realization, Technology and Television
. Comments

On March 14, 2008, I posted something in the Facebook’s UCM Network discussion forums about the lack of technological opportunities on the University of Central Missouri’s campus.  Now, my ideas have evolved since then and I am currently scheduled to meet with a member of the IT department on campus tomorrow.  There I will discuss what new tech-based programs are being implemented or about to be implemented on campus and possible future projects.  Well, the Facebook discussion has gone from blah to blah.  My latest post, I will quote here.

Wifi is great all around campus. However, the Help Desk does not officially support Windows Vista and has no instructions on connecting Vista machines to the wifi network. This I see as a mistake as more students adopt it with newer computers. There is also no support for Windows Mobile devices, a rapidly increasing market share in mobile devices, including cell phones.

Tuition at UCM increased by about 10% over the last financial aid reward year. You are telling me that about another $1200 per student covered installing wifi in the dorms? That comes out to about 10 million extra dollars over the next financial aid reward year. Yes, I realize this is a drastically simplistic POV, presuming all students pay out-of-pocket for tuition. Regardless, where is that money going?

If you can give me a detailed list of where every single dollar is going on this campus, then fine, I will shut my mouth about the piss poor technology opportunities this campus affords its students. Until then, I will keep on trying to get this campus into the 21st century.

To be completely honest, I am surprised at the lack of motivation or desire in this field. I would figure that most of the students would see and embrace new technologies and their possible applications in education.

No matter what your degree field is, the Internet, converging media, emerging technologies, along with a shrinking world is part of our future. Students at this institution need to realize that so many of the business models that are around today will either be gone or completely changed in our lifetime. Not to mention incoming freshman’s lifetime. It shouldn’t matter how much you pay for tuition, if you are being prepared for the future, you aren’t getting your money’s worth.

My goal is merely to help guide students into a changing and evolving world. If my fellow student doesn’t want that, I’m going to keep trying anyway.

I will NOT get discouraged.  For the love of god, I can’t.  This is IMPORTANT.  I just know it is.  I refuse to accept the fact that I am going to an institution that lulls its students into a false sense of security that things aren’t changing because they pay a low tuition rate.  There have to be other students on campus that feel the same way.  There has to be students who see the future in much the same way I do.  There are so many changes that are just around the corner and many of the previous education and business models will be completely changed by them.  Students who are there to live and breath on that cusp will come out the other side ready and more willing to embrace and understand that change.

My personal degree field is about to be changed forever in a way that so many people aren’t going to see coming until it is too late to do anything about it.  Broadcasting is shifting in such a way that conventional television is look nothing like it once did.  We can already see some of these changes happening.  All of the major networks have their popular programming online.  Hulu.com, YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler, et cetera are just the beginning of a digital revolution.  The turnkey moment is about to happen on February 17, 2009.  The switch to digital over-the-air broadcasts will go down as a defining moment in broadcasting history.  When the change happens, it won’t actually change a whole lot, but at the same time it will and has been changing everything.  Most broadcasters already send out a digital signal as it is, but before the 02/17/09 changeover, the public as a mass whole wasn’t that aware of what was going on.  Now, they are forced to be thrown into the thick of it.  This will, VERY slowly, bring an awareness of change into the mind of the average viewer.  Once this happens, things will change and change in ways that will only be foreseeable to those right there on the edge and ready to jump.

Now, I admit.  I could be wrong.  Conventional businesses could be around for another hundred years without drastically changing.  I could be wasting my efforts and maybe I should be focusing on something more conventional.

I just don’t think so.

CableCARDs

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on February 23, 2008
in Computers, Technology and Television
. Comments

tivo_cablecard.jpgAs I understand it, some of you may be shackled to your cable company’s crappy DVR. Well, it turns out that, if you didn’t know this already, you have an option. Some would say satellite, and that is indeed an option, but what if your landlord won’t let you put a dish on the unit or even in the yard? Maybe you can’t get line-of-sight to the right area of the sky? What if your house is really only wired for cable or some craziness like that? Well, let us say that you have resigned to the cable way, but you really, really hate their DVR. Well, have you heard of CableCARDs? These little credit card-sized cards go into the back of newer third-party DVRs. The cards are essentially tuners that receive all the channels that you subscribe to via your cable provider. They are designed with digital cable in mind and will decode these digital channels, allowing you to watch and record them. DVRs you can use these with include TiVo and Niveus devices. These two companies’ devices (along with many others) are on the list of CableLabs certified CableCARD devices. This means that if the cable company says they don’t support TiVo and you can’t use it on their system, you have just been lied to. The FCC requires all cable companies to support and offer CableCARDs to their customers. You may still have to pay a “rental fee” for using the CableCARD, but research and articles suggest this price will probably be much, MUCH less than the “DVR fee” the cable companies currently charge you. So, you may have to call TiVo if the unit itself breaks, but if the CableCARD craps out, then that is the cable company’s issue.

So, now you want yourself the beauty of a TiVo HD and to dump that shitty 20Gb Motorola DVR the cable company gave you. I would suggest reading through this set of articles before you go demanding your CableCARDs and doing some research into the DVR system you are wanting to get and what CableCARDs it supports. That article focuses around the newer M-Cards or Multistream Cards, but I think the message is still very much valid. M-Cards do the same job as that dual-tuner box you watch TV through now, meaning you can watch one thing while recording another and all that. Normally, you would have to get two single stream cards to the job. This may still be the case in some TiVo boxes, so I would keep your eye out and check the specs of whatever you buy.

If you are feeling especially spry, you could try building your own PVR out of a spare computer and MythTV or Windows Media Center and use a CableCARD reader (or two), but personally, I am not that self-confident and don’t have the expendable income to experiment. If you choose this method, keep in the mind that processing HD content requires a LOT more horsepower than SD content. An Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 has a hard time decoding and processing HD. I’m not saying they can’t or won’t do it, but it will/can be taxing to the system, so keep that in mind.

There you have it. I hope this inspires at least a couple of you to give the boot to crappy DVRs and go with the good stuff. Remember, the first hit’s free.

Knight Rider

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on February 18, 2008
in Television
. Comments

knight_rider_poster.jpgI just finished watching the new Knight Rider movie that debuted on NBC tonight. The movie revolves around Sarah Graiman (Deanna Russo) and her attempt to find her father after a car he created picks her up. On the way, the car (K.I.T.T.) decides to pick up Mike Traceur (Justin Bruening) so he can help protect her from the evil men trying to kidnap Sarah and force her to decrypt her father’s files in order to use K.I.T.T. to take over the Pentagon’s wireless remote network and start some wars.  That is probably the quickest and ugliest plot description ever.

I have to say that I didn’t fall in love with this movie. There were some fears that it was going to be a continuation of the Knight Rider storyline, and that is exactly what it was. Yeah, it was a made-for-TV movie. Yeah, it is probably a jumping off point for a new series (at least it left you with that feeling at the end). It really wasn’t that good. The acting was stale and over done. The visual effects were late-90s at best. There was one time that I could actually tell that the car was put on the road in post production. And boy howdy did this movie LOVE the fuck out of some green screen. I’ve seen better green screening done in the tutorials at VideoCopilot.net and they were doing it quick and dirty just to show you how to do it.

I have to admit that I didn’t hate EVERYTHING about the movie. I did like K.I.T.T. as voiced by Val Kilmer. He was amusing and the quick cameo return of the Hoff’s character and the reason he showed up was also good for a chuckle.  In fact there were several times that I laughed out loud because the movie was so ridiculously bad.  From choices of organization names (”BlackRiver”, guess what they do) to just plain ol’ bad acting, this movie had unintentional funny moments all over it.

There you go. I didn’t like it, but I watched it anyway. Feel free to tell me what you thought of it, whether you thought my (quick) review is accurate or complete bull.

My car is getting fixed, so hopefully Lexy and I can get up to Independence this week to see a movie and I will let you know what we saw and what I thought of it.  I should have my first Audio project done tomorrow, so I can upload that and those that want to torture themselves can listen to it and tell me what they think.

I’ve been watching TV

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on February 6, 2008
in Interesting, Opinion and Television
. Comments

Lately, television has been taking a bit of a dive lately. Of course we all know the reason for that. The Writer’s Strike has been going on for a while now and I believe that it has successfully hit TV really hard. For example, the CHRISTMAS episode of House just aired the Tuesday before the Superbowl (January 29 if my reading of Google Calendar isn’t failing me). Wow. I understand the need to do a Christmas episode and similarly the need to stretch your season out as far as possible, but holy crap cracker, think about that. You are releasing a Christmas episode in January. Personally, they should have released it as the last episode of last year as that was such an interesting episode that it could definitely have worked as a “we’re taking a break” episode.

terminator_tscc.pngA show that I am slightly annoyed by is Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. This show is mostly annoying me because I think they write the episode AFTER they finish shooting it. Slight exaggeration, I know, but the show has such terrible points of atrocious acting and the inability to keep a straight story. I just finished watching Heavy Metal which is episode 4. Now, I have voiced my biggest issue with this show to those few that I have talked in person with about this show. Well, in case you aren’t one of those lucky few that I have had the pleasure of having dinner with, here it is. Summer Glau’s character is Cameron, the machine that is sent back in time to protect John Connor. In the pilot episode when you were introduced to the character, you genuinely believed that she was a normal high school student. Personally, I was doubting the fact that she was a Machine when you first hear her talk and interact with John. Then as the show goes on, she becomes a Machine like we expect; stale and static in personality. Don’t get me wrong, I like the way Ms. Glau is playing the character now, but that first episode was kind of off-putting in comparison to the character she plays in the rest of the series thus far. The one thing that is constantly annoying about the show is that John Connor is a whiny bitch. He doesn’t understand what the fuck he is doing, but doesn’t give a shit because if things don’t go his way, he will either sulk and be a whinier bitch or put everyone in danger much like in the episode I just watched. Btw, I just got around to watching it today because it wasn’t released online until today. I have to watch it online due to recording conflicts. You put six people in a house with a single DVR and eventually you have to give up a show here and there. Now, the show as a whole is rather enjoyable and I will continue to watch it regardless of how bitchy and whiny John Connor becomes.

Another show that I am starting to watch and enjoy is In Treatment. This drama is about a psychologist and his patients and how his sessions with his patients influence his personal life. The show is on HBO every Monday through Friday. Each day is a session with a client on that particular day. Monday’s are Laura, Tuesdays Alex, et cetera. Every episode is simply the session with the client, so the complexities arise in the dialog between Paul, the psychologist (Gabriel Byrne), and whatever client(s) he happens to have that day.  Not a whole lot happens in each episode, just talking and two people interacting, but the way the show has played out so far makes it extremely interesting.  Maybe its Gabriel Byrne.  Maybe its that this show is about what my wife wants to do with her life.  I can’t really explain why it is interesting other than the interactions between the characters is so damned enthralling.  I definitely recommend this show if you haven’t started watching it.

Well, I think that’s about it for now.  I hope you all enjoy the nifty stories that share in the Google Reader widget over there to the right.

iPods

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on October 31, 2007
in Media and Television
. Comments

ipod_classic.pngSo, in case you have not heard, I have become one of the iPod owners. I have a black 80Gb iPod Classic. You know, one of the new ones. I like it, but I want the 160Gb. It’s bigger. That’s all.

The new iPod Touch is one that I considered, but it is only available in 8Gb and 16Gb versions. That’s just not enough space for me. Besides, its just an iPhone without the phone part. Kinda useless to me considering the reviews I’ve read say that it doesn’t do the things that it does do as well as the iPhone does them. That’s kinda sad if you ask me. Though there is a reason that I mention the iPod Touch. The new commercial that you have no doubt seen on the TV. Here, I’ll include it here (the grey at the beginning is a encoding error, YouTube’s fault):

[youtube KKQUZPqDZb0]

Not a bad commercial, eh? Guess what? That’s the original. I don’t know if the person who put it up on YouTube is the original creator, though the description of the video says they are, so I’ll believe them.

Yeah, I see that look on your face that says, “Hey, that was awfully familiar.” Well, it should be familiar because Apple saw that YouTube video, loved it, contacted the creator, and flew him out to their headquarters to re-shoot the commercial in HD.

This makes me sad. Some rich little fucker who has access to a $1200 piece of software puts a bunch stock footage to a song and gets a commercial bought from him by Apple. I have a shit ton of ideas that will never see the light of day because I want to finish school and I don’t have the money to buy a Mac Pro (or even a MacBook Pro), Final Cut Studio, and a camera(s). I have to wait until I’m out there looking for a job at a retail outlet to even consider doing half the shit I want to do. I realize what I’m in for in this degree field. I have to be damn good at what I do to even be considered for a job and I know that I’m not. If I could get some “real world” experience under my belt with a few online shows, that would help my case, but I don’t have the access to the equipment or the people to do that. None of the people I live with would want to host the type of show that I would be interested in producing and the people who would want to help me live an hour and a half away in Jeff City.

The one show that I would be ecstatic about producing would be one idea came up with between my new “uncle” and myself. I put the “uncle” in quotes because it is just weird for me to think of him as my uncle even though he really is. The idea was came up with in the comments of this post on his blog (look in the comments), which is about an awesome show on BBC America called Top Gear. If you haven’t seen and you have the ability to watch it, you should. Yes, it’s about cars, but it’s a good show about cars. I guarantee, you will like it if you watch it.

Ok, I’m late for bed and I think this post has gone on long enough and has covered a lot of topic area. Look for a new poll.

How about some nice stuff to talk about?

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on October 23, 2007
in Television and Video Games
. Comments

Ok. Here it is. My official, on the Internet, opinion of Halo 3. It… is… awesome. It is awesome in the sense that it is a Halo game. I’ve always loved Halo and was kind of disappointed with the story on Halo 2. I’m sure you’ve heard about that. The cliffhanger ending and all that. Yeah, I liked the game, but it felt a little empty to me. The first Halo was a fulfilling, open game with big levels that were a bit linear, but still fun. Halo 2 was extremely linear and had hardly any feel of openness to it. Halo 3 still has that feeling of linear gameplay, but it is masked. You feel like you are in these huge, open levels, but you still are given a perfect, defined path through the level. I don’t really mind it because each level is huge and generally takes a while to play through. Single player is fun, but it’s coop that I’ve always really liked. I love playing through the game with another person and having the satisfaction of working together and developing strategies. Legendary isn’t actually all that tough. If you play with at least one other buddy (you can play with up to three other people in coop) Legendary is more than manageable, though I would play through on Normal first just to get the story of the game. Dave and I got him through Legendary on his 360 and maybe someday he will help me get through it on mine. Continue reading ‘How about some nice stuff to talk about?’

Best Episode EVER!

Published
by
Anthony Thompson
on September 23, 2007
in Funny and Television
. Comments

Tonight’s new episode of Family Guy was the best episode ever.  Why?  Because it was an hour-long parody of Star Wars.  It only covered Episode IV, but it was still very, very, VERY funny.  If you didn’t catch it, you should be ashamed of yourself.  Luckily we have a DVR, so those of you whom I live with who haven’t watched it, should.  Though, you should only watch it if you love Star Wars and love Family Guy.  So funny.  Hooray for premier week.

Also.  I’m going to stop bitching on this blog.  I know things aren’t as bad as I blog it to be.  I will only bitch about shit if I feel like I was actually wronged in some way.  That should calm the wolves.