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Telus turns Canadian Xbox 360s into IPTV boxes starting today

2010-08-04T19:07:00Z

After years (and years) of waiting it's no surprise to see the Xbox 360 finally sliding into the role of IPTV set-top box, but we couldn't have seen Canada's Telus being the first in North America to offer the option. It only switched customers over to the Microsoft Mediaroom platform (also used by AT&T's U-Verse, where the feature should appear soon) powering its Optik TV package -- currently only available in Alberta and B.C. -- earlier this year, enabling this new multiroom setup. Of course, that means the Xbox 360 can't be the only set-top box in the house -- it just acts as a client to the main DVR for live TV watching, or to schedule and watch previously recorded programming. Subscribers owners can check the main website for access on their current Xbox 360 or grab a free new system by signing up for two years of internet access. Mediaroom 2.0 is expected to bring PCs and mobile devices into the fold at some point as well, but for now check out the Xbox 360 experience in our video demo after the break, as well as a press release with all the details.

Continue reading Telus turns Canadian Xbox 360s into IPTV boxes starting today

Telus turns Canadian Xbox 360s into IPTV boxes starting today originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Antenna-aid bandages your iPhone 4 reception issue, hopes for role in next Eminem video

2010-07-20T17:29:00Z

Oh, Steve -- you should've known better. You show up and remove a laptop from a manila envelope, and Earth's most creative go and create a case fashioned out of one. You go and suggest that Eminem could "come out with a band-aid that goes over the corner" of your controversial iPhone 4, and well... this happens. You could wait for a free case, or you could buy six of these Antenna-aids for five bucks. The choice is obvious.

Antenna-aid bandages your iPhone 4 reception issue, hopes for role in next Eminem video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Five Ways to Access a Remote Mac

2010-07-19T18:30:10Z

According to a recent study, two-thirds of the U.S. households that own Macs have more than one computer. Nearly three quarters of those households have laptops as well as desktops. A significant number of those Mac households also own iPhones, iPads, or other iOS devices.

Combine those numbers, and you have a lot of Mac owners who need to connect from one computer (or iOS device) to another--whether that other computer is down the hall or across the country.

They need not only access to files on other machines, but also the ability to control the remote machine and run apps on it. They might want search through an e-mail archive, start a backup, or use a database that's stored only on that other machine. In the home, they might want to control a Mac mini-based home-entertainment server that has no monitor of its own.

(If you all you really need is access to files on other computers, you might need only a file-synchronization service such as Dropbox and SugarSync; see Four ways to access files from afar for more.)

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to make such remote connections. They divide themselves roughly into five categories:

* Tools built into OS X itself, including Screen Sharing and Back to My Mac;

* Chat services such as iChat and Skype;

* Dedicated online services including LogMeIn and GoToMyPC;

* Timbuktu Pro; and

* VNC.

(For the purposes of these articles, we're looking at remote graphical control, and not Remote Login (using SSH). If you need that kind of access, chances are you already know all about it.)

Unfortunately, it's not always easy to figure out which one of those options will best meet your specific needs. And even if you've settled on a solution, it's not always easy to get it to work.

Why it's hard

Remotely controlling one Mac from another within the same local network isn't especially difficult; Bonjour and other networking tools do a good job of that. Controlling a machine on a remote network is trickier; much of the networking hardware and software between the two is set up specifically to keep that from happening.

Home networks typically use a combination of two technologies--Network Address Translation (NAT) and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)--to provide Internet access to multiple computers through a single Internet address and to provide a light (not robust) buffer to keep strangers out of the network. They can keep you out, too.

DHCP assigns private network addresses to the local computers. NAT then rewrites those addresses at the router, so that, to the rest of the Internet, all the traffic from those multiple computers seems to be coming to and from just one publicly accessible address. On business networks, firewalls and other filters further complicate any efforts to gain access.

Some remote-access tools (particularly dedicated remote-access services such as Back to My Mac, GoToMyPC, and LogMeIn) take care of this problem by talking directly to a router's NAT software and then mapping specific pathways into the network.

Other solutions (including OS X's built-in Screen Sharing software and VNC) require you to set up port mapping. (If IP addresses are like street numbers for apartment buildings, ports are like individual apartments at those addresses. A port is assigned to a particular service, such as file sharing or outgoing e-mail.) That means establishing persistent connections between ports on the router's Internet-facing IP address and specific computers inside the network.

If you're lucky, NAT-PMP (NAT Port Mapping Protocol, favored by Apple) or UPnP (Universal Plug and Play, common on non-Apple hardware) on your router can take care of the port mapping for you. Third-party software such as Port Map or Lighthouse can also do the trick. (Another program, ShareTool, can create persistent connections between local networks, allowing for standard Bonjour hook-ups.)

Port mapping manually is also doable, but it means learning the arcana of which ports are used for which services, how to assign persistent addresses or identities to computers on the network, and how to find your external public IP address (if your ISP you assigned one).

There is another workaround for gaining remote access: Dynamic DNS lets you map a human-readable domain name, like remote.mymachine.com to your router's public IP address. For more on that, see Setting up dynamic DNS.

The right route

To figure out which remote access alternative is right for you, you need to consider a few different features:

Security All of the options listed above except for VNC strongly encrypt remote-access connections by default. If you opt for VNC, you need to make sure you take extra precautions if you use public networks, like Wi-Fi hotspots.

Cost The most reliable options cost the most. LogMeIn and GoToMyPC have hefty per-machine fees, while Timbuktu Pro has a high, one-time per-computer price tag. Back to My Mac is less expensive (the cost of a MobileMe subscription), but it doesn't work for everyone.

Multiple monitors Different remote control packages vary in their support for multiple monitors, on both the local machine you're using and the one you're viewing remotely. Certain flavors of VNC can share just the primary screen on a system; screen sharing over iChat squeezes multiple remote screens into a single local display.

Bandwidth control Some programs automatically ratchet the quality of the remote display up and down based on how fast data is moving back and forth. Others can be or must be set manually to a lower bit-depth (meaning fewer distinct colors) or lower image fidelity to keep the connection speed reasonable.

File sharing Remote control may be all you're after, but remote access to files is often just as important. Many of the remote control packages lack integrated or well-designed ways to move files from one machine to another.

iOS support It is possible to connect to a Mac from an iPhone or iPad using LogMeIn, GoToMyPC, and VNC apps.

In a series of articles that will follow this one, I'll talk you through the ins and outs of each remote access option. Note that in some cases, depending on the features you need, you may actually have to adopt more than one. First up: the remote control tools built into OS X itself.

Glenn Fleishman has written about Mac networking for a decade, and is the author of Take Control of Screen Sharing in Snow Leopard (TidBITS Publishing, 2010).

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Ben & Jerry's iPhone App Gets Even More Psychedelic with Augmented Reality

2010-07-18T08:31:15Z

Shared by ChantelleJoy
- http://www.iPhoneAppGirl.com -

Ben & Jerry’s Scoop of Happiness app has just been re-released with new augmented reality functionality.

FaceTime video call works beautifully on airplane's in-flight WiFi (video) -- Engadget

2010-07-18T08:15:09Z

Shared by ChantelleJoy
- http://www.iPhoneAppGirl.com -

Yeah, seriously. While Aircell's Gogo in-flight WiFi service has been blocking VoIP calling services (Skype being the most obvious example) from day

Photoshops

2007-10-19T04:00:00Z

Once more with Who?

2007-08-09T05:47:49Z

Ok ummm, I was bored, and I was listening to the Buffy soundtrack 'Once More with Feeling', and yeah, I was just bored. Sorry guys.

Oh not dial up friendly. And spoilers for series' 1,2 and 3as well as the BtVS episode 'Once More with Feeling'...obviously.

Seriously, please? Some one shoot me?

moar simpsonized DW characters

2007-08-03T02:57:45Z

Inspired by nodipsherlock's simpsons post, I made some more characters into Simpsons!

Eeexcellent.

2007-08-02T07:31:15Z

Images (Martha, Donna, and Rose as Simpsons characters) and one fake motivator.

Spoiler(s): Utopia, and one scene from The Simpsons Movie, but it's been featured extensively in trailers so I doubt it counts as a spoiler anymore. For courtesy, I'll post the spoilery picture last. Credit where credit is due: for one picture, http://www.time-and-space.co.uk/ the others are from the BBC site (you can probably tell) and Simpsonizeme.com

I think this one came out the best, IMHO.

I dunno. I just don't see it.

This is a good one too, but as I said earlier, I thought Martha's came out the best.

My apologies to those who cannot see this very well. My compy's being silly tonight. Anyway- ALL GLORY TO SPIDER-PIG!

Because everybody loves Elton John!

2007-07-27T08:06:37Z

I'm hoping that this is funny to someone other than me...and at another time than 3:00 in the morning. (At which time I thought it was hilarious.)
Spoilers for Series 3 of Dr. Who. Caps from time-and-space.co.uk.
And sorry for the size. Just keep clickin' and they get bigger.