Shorten The Road

NBC Universal and News Corp.’s Online-Video Joint Venture

I recently read an article that states the online-video joint venture of NBC and Fox will challenge YouTube. My question is this; what is the challenge? YouTube provides small streaming video of various clips from home videos to unapproved licensed material. The media companies can provide full-length features on a larger streaming image. The media companies spend some much time and effort suing YouTube, when they should be building an infrastructure to embrace these mainstream technologies and deliver their sought after content.

Currently, many of the media companies are making a handful of their prime-time TV shows available over the internet. My wife and I have watched many episodes via internet. No more setting the Tivo or DVR; much like ‘on-demand’ delivery by the cable systems, we can start and stop these shows at our convenience.

Here is a thought for big media:  Why not require users to sign in to watch the programming. At registration, you can collect demographic information and curtail the advertising appropriately. Keep the breaks to an extreme minimum of 15 to 30 seconds spots no less then 10 minutes apart, but feel free to post ads above or below the feature. Have options for users to get information about their favorite shows and when a new episode is posted, send them an email which could also contain an advertisement.

As a registered user of Joost, I’m impressed with Joost’s ability to provide video utilizing a peer-to-peer TV system and application. Joost takes the time to solicit feedback from their users, including asking about the number of ads and their duration. The biggest drawback for me is that Joost doesn’t offer a lot of the content that I’m interested in. I would love to log in to one place and find my favorite shows like Entourage, Sopranos, Rescue Me, Battlestar Galactica, and 30 Rock (just to name a few). So, if big media doesn’t want to invest in the infrastructure themselves, then they should partner with companies like Joost who have a viable outlet. But provide the shows people want to see! Or they will find other methods to view them.

http://www.ubuntu.com/

Hooray and Nay to Dell in their recent decision to offer Ubuntu. Ubuntu is a user friendly flavor of Linux. This move by Dell to offer a free and open source software operating system will foster greater support and a larger community for this software. Microsoft’s operating systems are somewhat costly, especially given the need to ‘upgrade’ periodically. Outside of the techies and gamers, most people use their computers to email, IM, surf the internet, and perform functions supported by office suites. Ubuntu comes with software to help facilitate all these needs, including Firefox (browser) and OpenOffice.org (office suite).

Do you have an older computer that does fit the requirements of the latest Microsoft OS and version you have installed is no longer supported? Consider installing Ubuntu.
Not sure if Ubuntu will run on your old computer? Then run it from the CD before making the commitment to installing it.

Hooray to you Dell. A company with your weight supporting this OS should have a positive impact in the market place!

BUT Dell is a business and a business needs to make as much money as they possibly can. I found it disappointing when I customized the machine and found the cost was identical to a machine with a Microsoft operating system. The money Dell will save in licensing costs to Microsoft will be put in the company coffers. This was a disappointing revelation. I thought something was amiss when I was not able to choose between the two operating systems during customization. The systems needed to be configured separately. At first, it appeared the system with Ubuntu would be less expensive, but that was due to the Ubuntu base configuration had less horsepower. After completing similar configurations for both systems, the price was identical. The only significant difference between the two configurations was the CPU on the Ubuntu system was 1.80 GHz and 2.00 GHz on the Microsoft system. Not only was the price identical, Dell charges extra if you want software support on the Ubuntu system.

In this day and age, you probably have an older computer collecting dust. Stop watching the summer reruns and take some time to tinker around with this Operating System. You might find it easier then you think.

MIT OpenCourseWare

That’s right; you can have a free education from the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As of this posting, the MIT OpenCourseWare contains over 1500 courses in 30+ subjects provided by the MIT faculty. Courses can contain syllabi, video lectures, exams, assignments, solutions, labs, and more.

With so many choices, you will surely find something that will interest you:
If robotics is your hobby, check out ‘Cognitive Robotics.’
If you like Math, check out ‘Nonlinear Dynamics and Chaos.’ (I wonder if that is the same as the Chaos in Get Smart? Or was it Kaos? Hmmm.)
They even have a course on Archery.
I’m sure you will find something that will tickle your fancy.

I have not taken a course in full, but I have referenced this site numerous times. It is a great resource.

Didn’t get the grades you needed for MIT?
Didn’t have the money to go?
You no longer have any excuses!