PenguinSix

So everyone who went to Vegas came back talking about 3D televisions, and I guess I probably should as well.
The folks who saw 3D tv and who were awestruck basically fell into two categories:  gamers and sports fans.  The gamers were really excited about some of their favorite titles ending up in HD, and the [...]

Random tip of the day.
One of the odd things I’ve noticed with the BBC’s iPlayer downloader is that when you play back videos in full screen, the font size of the subtitles can be ridiculously small.  I looked through the settings trying to find a solution, but there didn’t appear to be on easy way [...]

China’s CCTV has just released a new iPhone application that really blows away most other TV iPhone applications that I’ve seen.  Of course, there is this caveat–it’s all in Chinese, and pretty much not worth much to those who don’t speak Mandarin (with the exception of sports content), but the application is chock a block [...]

When it comes to IPTV, the US has Hulu, and the rest of the world has the really cool stuff.
France 24, the France’s government-funded answer to CNN (and in English too)  has been doing some cutting edge stuff like being one of the first ‘live streaming’ applications for the iPhone.  Now they have a desktop [...]

 
Wow, it’s been over two months since I made the decision to cut the Comcast cable to the house and just live in an IPTV and ‘Over the Air’ world.  I hooked up Mac Mini’s to each of the TVs (god I wish Apple would really delve into the market of guys who have Mini’s [...]

Al Jazeera’s English service is very slick, very professional, and if you want, very biased (depending on who you talk to).  But for most Americans without FTA dishes or access to some IPTV programs, they never had an opportunity to judge for themselves.  Until now.
MHZ Networks, a non-profit in DC that rebroadcasts nearly 10 foreign [...]

Well, I survived, more of less.
When I was in Hong Kong, there were basically only a few channels of English programming. BBC World, CNN International, DW (English and German), the English Premier League soccer channel and ATV, which showed reruns of 24 and a few other tv shows. In fact, while I was [...]

From the about fricking time department, word has come from the TUAW that the much anticipated Slingplayer application for the iPhone has been submitted for approval with the overlords at Apple HQ. Slingplayer is a tool of many an expat used to ’sling’ back television content from a central location (i.e. their parent’s [...]

Well we had a bit of a grace period while they worked out just exactly how to disconnect things, but just a few moments ago the remnants of the CNBC feed disappeared into static. It’s kind of like a power failure–there is no more cable in the house.
We got by pretty well last night. [...]

I dropped off the Cable Boxes this morning. It’s been a long friendship between me and that lovely pice of coaxial, but I realized if I’m truly going to get a taste of what else is out there, I’ve got to eliminate the ‘easy’ way of watching TV–flipping on the cable–and try the new [...]

So I’ve decided to do it.
A news junkie cutting the cable and going without the joy that little coaxial brings into my home.
But fear not, I’ve made alternate arrangements for my ‘tv’ viewing.
Here we go:

Hardware:
I have a Mac Mini in the garage that currently serves as a ‘development’ server for my websites. [...]

When I first set up my home office, I made sure that the desk was turned in such a way that I could watch the big tv that was in the adjacent living room. If something was interesting and I wanted to watch, I could just look to the side of the monitor and [...]

While poking around the app store yesterday, I came across a few new applications that have tremendous promise.

France 24 in the news section offer live streaming of the France 24 (think CNN of France). The buffering is pretty quick and the quality is not bad. France24 is a different take on some of [...]

I’ve been a pretty big fan of Livestation since I first downloaded a copy a month or so ago.  Now I’m even more excited as it appears Livestation will be ported to the Apple iPhone, bringing live video & tv to the iPhone.  The announcement will take place today here but I’m not sure when it [...]

I’m a news junkie, especially from non-US sources. Unfortunately, watching TV from Europe or Asia is hampered by a big problem–the curve of the Earth. The satellites that hit Europe and Asia are not exactly positioned to beam their signals down to the US. While I have the big dish to get [...]