That’s iPod photos, iPod nanos, or iPod videos. Via screen shots. Here is how.
Less
More
Archive for October, 2005
Update (10:49am OCT27) : MacTheRipper with HandBrake works, MovieToGo works. Looking at the list of applications needed for WindO$, I am not even gonna bother to look them up on their respective sites.
As for the battery, for playing videos, the harddisk of the iPod 60GB does not seem to spin all the time either. While it should in theory spin more for videos than for audio to fill up the buffer, hence using more power and therefore less play time than playing audio only, I believe the main power drain is the back lit of the screen much more so than the harddisk movement. I have tried leaving the back lit on the nano on all the time and I get less than 5 hours of play time with the nano on a full charge, and that’s strictly on Flash RAM only.
——
A how-to article here.
It should be noted though, I have tried using FFMpegX numerous times and not even once have I ever been able to get a file converted that was able to be played back with QT7 let alone the iPod.
Sunday morning breakfast on a balcony overlooking several tennis courts at a local recreation club.
Update (06:26pm) : About the video function, Although I didn’t buy the iPod for the video function, I did try converting 2 DVDs. Since I don’t have QuickTime Pro, and in keeping up the spirit of using freeware, I used MacTheRipper to first RIP the DVD into my PB17, and then I use HandBrake to convert the files into a video format that is supported by the iPod. I first tried converting a movie into H.264 but that didn’t work and was halted by iTunes for it was somehow incompatible with the iPod. As it turned out, HandBrake defaults the video bitrate at 1000Kbps and the iPod only supports H.264 format upto 768 Kbps. So I try a concert on DVD and this time I tried MP4 format at 480 dots wide and 1000Kbps which the iPod supports up to 2.5Mbps. The video quality on the iPod was superb! There were a few glitches on the audio track for it was converted at the default audio bitrate of 128Kbps. I then tried converting into MP4 with 320 dots wide, V-768Kbps, and A-224Kbps. The video quality was slightly degraded and there were less glitches in the audio track. So one might want to try converting at an even higher audio bitrate. The entire RIPping and converting time totaled to about twice the length of the DVD on my 1GB 1.67GHz PB17.
After a few short trips with the new iPod, I find the original slip case nicely made but it’s a slight hassle to use taking the iPod in and out just to see what’s on the screen. The weight of this 60GB version is not too heavy and definitely shirt pocketable. It is rather nice and extremely convenient to have the entire about half of my CD collection to be stored in the palm of my hand. Making the iPod a possible candidate for daily use which could leave the nano good for the “evening out” type situation.
N.B. Those of you who still haven’t downloaded MacTheRipper yet, hurry. The developer’s website was forced to be closed earlier this year. However, the application can still be found in various software download sites including the above link.
N.B.2 : The “60GB” gets the usual about 7% harddisk manufacturer BS rip off leaving a total usable free disc space of about 55GB, so expect about a nano and a half less storage than one might expect!
———-
For many of those on the Net who is wondering whether the latest iPod with video is just as susceptible to scratches as the nano is, I am sorry to report that it is just as easily scratched as the nano. In fact, it is more susceptible to scratches than a regular audio compact disc. The same procedure of waxing with Nu Finish car polish and 3M buffing cloth as I did with the nano has introduced more easily seen scratches and swirl marks perhaps due the the large surface of the new iPod over the nano. While I have tried this same polishing procedure to a compact disc which had removed some minor scratches and swirl marks, it add some to the iPod. However, I think if I us a lighter applying and buffing technique, I should be able to remove some swirl marks with the Nu Finish car polish. Since custom clear skin type screen protectors are not yet available for the new iPod, I opt for a set that’s custom fits an iPod Photo. The back piece fitted perfectly on the new iPod but the front is just barely wide enough to cover the display area leaving the black edges on both sides. The dial opening is about 1/2 cm off to the top and almost perfect at the bottom of the dial. Since the dial of the new iPod has a about 3.2mm diameter smaller than that of the iPod photo’s, the dial opening is slightly bigger all round. The top and bottom edge is about the same as the sides, so if you imagine the iPod being about the size of a regular 3R size photo (iPod is actually smaller) with white edges all round the image area, that white edges is about the area of what is left open by the clear skin protector.
That said, the scratches and swirl marks are only like minor blemishes which can only be seen at a certain angle under some lighting situations (perhaps under a more direction lighting situstion. Here in the office where we have quite evenly lit lighting, I can’t even see any of th swirl marks at all. The skin protector would do for now and it is fine for regular handling and usage by my hand (unless one has sandpaper type hand skin than I wouldn’t know).
As to the sound, I have no problem with high frequencies being distorted whatsoever like some had reported on the net with the iPod Photo which some guessed that it might be due to the video out port being on the exact same port as the audio. I have tried both turning the video out signal option on and off and it made no difference to the sound. It does seem to have a louder signal than the nano does but further testing is need in this regard. Bass wise, I have no problem with both the nano and the new iPod. Highs could do a little more on both, and I find a EQ setting of “Classical” works best for all types of music as well as some Podcasts. The majority of the Podcasts that I have listened to do not need any EQ settings at all.
This is all done with the Panasonic RP-HJE50 earplugs which costs anywhere from HKD$165 to $239 that I have seen in stores. They are by far the most all round everyday use best buy earplugs I have heard so far. Great with the nano everywhere. The Pioneer ones that I have bought and reported earlier just don’t cut it, which I had to keep switching EQ settings for each and every song and Podcast!
Another best buy is the Sennheiser PX200. These are closed type super-aural headphones at about HKD$400. While earplugs/earbuds give you the sound inside the ear, these have more of a “surrounded sound” (not to be confused with Dolby’s “Surround Sound”). The PX200 needs to be run-in big time. When new they sounded very tinny. Give them at least 50 hours of run-in, I left mine one each and every night, they would turn into a great sounding set. The bass is the wave like pushing against the ear type bass (as in Double Bass) sound which is just I way wanted; not the head banging type (as in mid frequencies Rock ‘n Roll Drum like) that most might long for. Resolution is high with better sound stage than earplugs/earbuds but still nowhere as great a sound stage as some of the ancient closed type circum-aural one that I remember. The PX200 is great with the new iPod for a relaxed music listening hours.
As for the Etymotic ER-4P, they are great for noisy areas, like most places with elderlies. Great sounding of each and every musical note, but However, the less comfortable wear still leaves some to be desired.
If regularly on each and every event one prefers saving money instead, which as a result puts a toll on or even endangers one’s own and/or one’s family’s health, security, well being, or even safety, then what good would it possibly do with all that money saved? Endanger one’s descendents’ current well being constantly for their possible future well being in case they really have a future by then?
Unless yourself are also a smoker, DON’T.
They reek!
One walked in this evening and started walking on the 2nd treadmill next to the one I was on - that’s one empty treadmill between us. She must have just finished a toke. Luckily, I was already on the last 5 minutes of cooling down. I had to cut short and got off within the minute!
Here is how.
Alec had just finished his 1st term exams on Thursday. I thought we could have some quality time together over the weekend. Today, he came back from school with 17 pieces of exercise homework plus a few reading homework. At this moment, he has finished 9 pieces of exercise homework. I am trying to push him into finishing off all the exercise homework on the same day regardless of today being a Friday.
Two weeks ago on a week day, he came back from an extracurricular tutorial with several pages of math and English verb/tense exercises, all mad and wet eyed, for he was nowhere closed to finishing his school homework and then there were more from the tutorial. So I asked him to just finish his school homework first. Since there were dictations and other reading work to do, he couldn’t finish the tutorial homework in time. The tutor opt to put him on detention and made him do huge amount of correction like copying the incorrect verb table 15 times!
To me, a tutorial should only have class work and not more homework on top of the school homework. I told M to quit all such tutorial for Alec immediately and we’ll look for more private tutoring session on top of the 2 sessions a week of private tutoring Alec has already been getting beside the two tutorial class instead.
Not enough time to play is not a proper way for a kid to grow up but then again Alec is in P5, assessment for advancing to Secondary school starts in the second half of this school year. Educational something titled iDiot Tin Yee Siu had changed his mind from going into the planned 100% acceptance for such affiliated Primary/Secondary schools as Alec’s to a less than 70% acceptance!
A very long and extremely tough year and a half coming up for Alec. However, I am not about to change a joyful carefree child into a grumpy brat just so he would have a better chance to get into the affiliated Secondary school!
Last night, I switched my iTunes directory to a folder in the FW400 external drive’s 2nd partition and moved all the songs over successfully. After converting about 20 more CDs or so with iTunes, the screen showed the drive have been removed right in the middle of converting a song, all by itself without me touching anything at the time at all! When I removed the FW cable, turned off the ext drive power, replugged the FW cable and turned on the power trying to remount the drive, it would only remount the primary partition with everything in it intact but there is no 2nd partition shown on the desktop. Both partitions were set to be Journaled.
Disk Utility showed both partitions with the 2nd partition grayed out. I went and verify both and they checked out OK. So I tried repairing them and they both showed OK as well. I have tried repairing the drive rights to both the ext and the int drives and that went OK. I tried several ways to reconnect the drive including unplugging everything and completely rebooted the computer, every way possible but to no avail.
I had also googled several methods including one suggested to have a file and a folder within the System/Library deleted, and switched to USB connection instead of FW, and still can’t have the 2nd partition remounted. All the methods geared toward solving this problem which I could google seemed to have been exhausted.
Luckily the partition only contained a backup of my older digital wallet which I still have and the primary partition only contained a recent image of my PB17 harddisk. So a repartition was called for which wiped out the drive and so I could start fresh with 2 empty partitions.
‘Trouble is, I can’t trust the drive anymore…
Must have been so into bartering that when she came over to our office building for a preliminary introduction of the premises, she asked how far the building is to the nearest MTR station, and when I answered it is about a 15 minute walk away, she asked if 10 minutes would be OK…
Well…, I am no Vulcan nor am I the miraculous Scotty but, I suppose Superman could actually reverse time and be there 10 minutes before he even started, but then again Superman was crippled from having fallen off a horse many years ago and died earlier this year. Or otherwise Stephen Hawking could possibly have the answer to the Ultimate Question to Life, the Universe, and Everything before he could get there by himself unassisted.
Info here.
No updates for the much needed higher video resolution in the 12″ PowerBook. Good, give it another 9 months or so for me to get my bank account ready and to write off the Fujitsu P5010.
WhaUSay?!