Calling all Canadians to get out there on May 2nd and VOTE! We can’t let this man back in Parliament!
If that is not enough then watch this one. Harper even steals a speech from Emperor Palpatine!
Apple iPod Nano Review
Yes you read the title correctly, I have an Apple iPod Nano. I recently won one with one of the affiliate programs I participate with and just recently got it in the mail. I thought I would give my impressions of the only Apple device I own.
First impressions were good. The device is small but the touch screen makes it easy to navigate around. My seven year old son even had no problems finding his way around on the little touch screen. Unfortunately my good first impression of the Apple iPod Nano did not last long.
I don’t use iTunes, I had hoped to die before ever having to use iTunes. I have my music collection all nicely sorted and managed on my Ubuntu desktop. I have regularly loaded my kids other MP3 players with music by simply hooking the devices up to my desktop and copying over the folders they wanted. It is simple, takes roughly 30 seconds and they are off listening to their new music. Not going to happen with the new iPod Nano.
Hooking it up to my Ubuntu desktop I was able to see the device but I quickly learned that the newest iPod Nano is not supported by my favourite music manager on Linux. Apparently the iPod Nano does not actually scan its internal storage for music but has some kind of database that needs to be updated and it can only be done at the moment by iTunes. Can you hear me swearing yet? Trust me I was.
I can live with the fact that I have to connect the device to a computer to copy music and photos on to it, but being forced to use iTunes was almost to much. I love my son, however, who decided this new device was now his, so I booted up my Windows virtual machine, downloaded iTunes and began the installation. After over an hour it had finally finished installing and scanning all the music and I was able to copy music on to the iPod. That went fairly smoothly. iTunes is a bloated piece of crap but at least it worked. I was able to get the few kids albums he wanted onto the device and some photos.
I gave it to my son and he gladly went off and listened to some music. A little while later he came back to me and asked how he could watch the latest movie I had loaded onto his other MP3 player on the new one. I told him he couldn’t because it could not play videos. He then decided I could have the iPod Nano back and went and watched the movie on his older $25.00 MP3 player.
If you use iTunes to manage your music I guess using an iPod is not a large step. If you happen to already have your music collection organizied the way you like it and have no need to ever use iTunes never buy an iPod Nano. I have since loaded it with all the music the kids like and keep it in the car to hook up to the car stereo. This way I don’t have to put more music on it very often.
It is unfortunate that Apple feels they have to lock people into using iTunes to be able to do something as simple as putting music on a simple MP3 player. A task that should have taken me 30 seconds to do with a $25.00 MP3 player took me close to 2 hours initially with the iPod Nano.
Using the iPod Nano made me appreciate wirelessly connecting my Android devices to my network and loading music. It is so much easier and better than how Apple does it. Do iPhones have to connect to a computer to load music? If they do, what a waste of time.
I would never have bought it but winning it was nice and it confirmed to me why I never bought any kind of iPod in the past.
Disney Vacation
For those that did not know, we went on a winter holiday to Disney World and an eastern Carribean Disney Cruise. We spent 4 days at Disney World exploring the various parks and then set sail for 7 days on the Disney Magic cruise ship.
Overall I have to say we had a FANTASTIC TIME! There is something magical about a Disney holiday. I am not sure how to describe it really. We have been on several family holidays, including a two week trip to Parksville on Vancouver island, summer holidays to Waskesui and Christopher Lake and I really enjoy those times with my family, but this Disney holiday was different. Perhaps it is the scale that Disney does things on. Everything is bigger than life and still full of magic.
While each of us have our highlights let me give you some of my favourite things from Disney World and the Disney Cruise. I will talk about them seperately because they are very different Disney experiences, even though they do share some similarities.
This was my first time going to Disney World, and I was looking forward to being there with my kids, who I think are great ages to take. Matthew is 7 and Erica is 5. My favourite memory of going to Disney World was not any one ride or attraction, but watching the joy and thrill on my kids faces as we explored the various parks. Of course there some things that stood out.
Cinderellas Royal Table – I heard about this just before we booked the Disney World part of our holiday. I did some reading on the Disney website and discovered I could book it online before we left, so that is exactly what I did and am I glad I did. We got a lunch sitting, and while it might have been the most expensive lunch we have ever had with the kids it was worth it. Like many little girls Erica loves the Disney Princesses so the chance to have them come to our table and spend a few moments chatting with the kids brought many huge smiles to my little girl. Matthew might not have thought to much of it but I think he enjoyed himself. I know he sure liked his dessert!
The parades were great. Each park was different but the kids loved watching them. Everyone loves a parade I guess.
Mickey’s Fantasmic – This was incredible! I was very glad we went back to Holywood Studios to see this. The scale and awe of this show is really amazing.
Magic Kingdom Fireworks – It was the first time the kids have seen fireworks so it was special that it was at the Magic Kingdom.
Hollywood Studios Stunt Show – Nothing like watching a bunch of cars and motorcycles drive around really fast. Matthew loved this, what 7 year old boy wouldn’t. It was like watching Hot Wheels live.
Toy Story Mania – This was by far my son’s favourite ride. We got got fast passes to go on it when we first got to Hollywood Studios and went on it before lunch the day we were there. When the second performance of the stunt show was on we got in the regular line for the ride and only had a 15 minute wait. Not bad for a ride that is so popular. Matthew would have gone more times if he could have.
Laugh Floor – It really surprised me how interactive this show was. I was expecting it to be more a just sit and watch kind of show, but the texting in jokes and audience interaction was great. I even got to dance in front of everyone. Kids loved the joke that was texted in as well. “What is the difference between brocolli and boogers? Kids never eat their brocolli.”
Tomorrowland Speedway – Matthew had a great time driving around the course. He was not tall enough to press the gas and drive so I handled the gas peddle and he drove. That suited me just fine. 
Tea Cup Spin – We went on this three times. Nothing like going round and round getting dizzy.
Mickey’s Philimagic – Leave it to Disney to turn a 3D film into an experience. The kids really liked the ending to this. I won’t say what it is, but they still bring it up.
Disney Princesses – We had lunch with the Princesses but Erica also saw the Princesses before lunch. It was impressive how the kids get a few special minutes to get autographs and photos.
Buzz and Woody – Seeing the Princesses was Erica’s thing, but Matthew had the chance to see Buzz and Woody which made his day. He also enjoyed seeing Mike and Sully from Monsters Inc.
Other things that were useful in Disney World
T-Mobile sim cards – Having unlocked cell phones paid off during the trip. I picked up a couple of T-Mobile prepaid SIM cards for our cell phones and they worked great. Roaming fees with Rogers would have cost us a ton, but with the T-Mobile SIM cards we were able to call / text each other and get web access for much less than roaming fees would have been.
Touringplans.com – Since we only had 4 days at Disney World before our cruise we wanted to make the best of our time there. Touringplans.com came in handy planning our days. Plus the web app on our phones was great to check wait times for certain rides. Although, I think we picked the best time possible to go since none of the wait times every seemed very long.
Disney Transportation System – Several people suggested we rent a car for when we were there, but I am so glad we did not. Staying at a Disney resort and hopping on the Disney bus was just easy. The longest we every had was 15 minutes for a bus. Not to mention it meant I got to relax and did not have to worry about driving around.
Disney Dining Plan – We had booked our trip with the Disney Dining Plan, but something went wrong somewhere. All the information we got and our travel agent got said we had booked the dining plan. The Disney resort said we did not book with the dining plan. It was frustrating at the time, but when all was said and done we were refunded the value of the dining plan that we paid roughly $700.00 for the four of us. We ended up using the Disney quick service mostly when we were there and it cost us roughly $550.00. When we go back we might not worry about the Disney Dining Plan.
Disney Cruise
We had a great time at Disney World for 4 days but I think we were all ready for the Disney Cruise.
Disney Magic – This ship is incredible! I know that the Disney Cruise line now has the Disney Dream, which is roughly twice the size of the Magic, but I still think the Magic was great. Nothing like having lots to do on the ship. Loved deck 9 for the pools and the food.
Character Appearances – Disney character appearances happen regularly and you can always find the schedule to make sure you meet the characters you want to see. Erica wanted to see the Princesses again so she was able to see several of them, plus the kids club had an event to Dozy Doo with Snow White which made her day.
Mickey and Pals Character Breakfast – Nothing like having Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale coming around to your table for autographs and photos! This was a lot of fun and I don’t know who enjoyed this more, Lynn and I or the kids.
Shows – The live shows were very enjoyable. Glad they had matinea performances so we could see them.
Castaway Cay – We had a great day at the beach at Castaway Cay. It was great to just be at the beach and play in the water. This was my favourite part of the cruise I think. Not to mention the you get a great BBQ lunch. Nothing like spending the day at the beach and not having to worry about cooking. I would have loved to have stayed their longer.
Overall it was a great trip. We are all hoping we can go again in a few years. I think we picked a great time to go, the weather was great and the crowds were not that bad. Next time we would probably plan for an extra day or two at Disney World so can explore Epcot more plus there were parts of all the parks that we were not able to see.
Snow Forsale
A house near mine has this great sign up. Could not help but laugh at it.
Birthday Wishes from Google!
It is not quite my birthday yet, but Google must think it is, because when I went to Google.com tonight I was greeted with a custom Google logo just for me and my birthday.
Thanks Google, so let me guess my birthday present is in the mail right?
Companies I Love to Hate!
We all have those companies that we love to hate. Some because I think they rip me off some just becuase. Anyways here are my favourite companies that I love to hate.
Cell Carriers – Pretty much all of them. Of course I have a particular hatred of Rogers and Sasktel, but they all pretty much suck.
Apple – All the Apple fanboys will probably jump on me for this one, but I hate Apple. Mostly because people think their products are so great when in reality they are nothing special, except being over priced. As a side note I also hate them because Steve Jobs needs a new wardrobe. The black turtle neck and jeans is getting old. This from a guy that does not have a great wardrobe. Not to mention I am sick of Apple being constantly talked about on Techcrunch.
Microsoft – Come on it is Microsoft.
Hulu – This hatred is probably more a general hate of old media in general, but Hulu gets mentioned because they are such a good representation of old media trying to control and maintain the same old same old. Tip: If you want to try and watch Hulu from outside of the good old USA try the Hide My Ass! Pro VPN Service.
Banks – I hate dealing with my bank. It seems like everytime I talk with them they are telling me about some new service charge for this or that. Less service and more service charges are their motto. If I could I would stuff my money in my mattress!
PayPal – This is similar to my hatred of banks, but PayPal gets a special mention because they keep saying they are not a bank. They are right, banks cannot sieze all of your money for no reason and not give it back.
Google – I have a love / hate relationship with Google. I love Gmail, Reader, Docs and my Android devices. Adsense and Adwords not so much. They are an impossible company to contact and they really do have some double standards. At least they do not all wear the same stupid black turtle neck and jeans.
Facebook – I do not even spend much time on Facebook compared to some people. If it was not useful for marketing my websites I would delete my acount.
That is all I can think of so far. I am sure I have missed a few but there has to be some that are not to bad right.
What are the companies you love to hate?
Netflix Comes to Canada
I have known for a little while that the Netflix movie service was going to open up shop in Canada. In the US Netflix is similar to Zip.ca here in Canada, you can choose movies and they will mail them to you. Actually it is really the the other way around, Zip.ca is similar to Netflix since Netflix started in the US before Zip.ca opened up here. The big difference between Netflix and Zip.ca is that Netflix offers streaming movies. Streaming movies straight to my living room is the service I was hoping for when I signed up for Zip.ca. Zip.ca announced a streaming service almost a year ago, but it has still not materialized. The day that Netflix finally opened their doors here in Canada and announce streaming movies is the day I signed up and cancelled my Zip.ca account. Zip.ca is a decent service for DVD’s by mail, but I see no reason anymore why I need plastic discs to watch a movie. Here are my impressions of the new Netflix in Canada streaming service so far.
The Good
Streaming! – Finally a streaming movie service in Canada. It is ridiculous that there are still services and DVD rental places moving plastic disks around. This is the way movies and TV on demand should be delivered! If the movie studios want to reduce piracy they need to make it easier to watch their content. Netflix provides an easy to use, instant streaming service. Before Netflix in Canada the next closest way to do this was to torrent the same content.
Wii, PS3 Support, Netflix Enabled Devices – There are lots of Netflix enabled devices available and most probably support Netflix Canada. We have a Wii and just got the disc the other day to use Netflix on the device. It is easy to use. While those that love their high quality 1080p HDTV might laugh at the quality the Wii puts out, it is decent enough to watch.
Windows and Mac support – Instant streaming to a Windows or Mac computer is simple. For those people that already have a media computer hooked up to their TV this will be the best way to watch Netflix.
The Bad
Microsoft Silverlight! I am sure Netflix has a good reason for this, and it probably has everything to do with DRM. Honestly though, Microsoft Silverlight SUCKS! My one Windows computer that is in our kitchen for everyone to use just chokes and dies when I try to play Netflix on it. The machine is not that old, and does most things fine, but Silverlight causes it to crash and become unresponsive 98% of the time.
Windows and Mac Instant Streaming Only – Linux does not get instant streaming and probably has everything to do with DRM. This is an inconvenience but it will stop me from watching TV and movies at my desk.
No Android app – This is not surprising since Linux is not supported. Would be nice to have with the Samsung Galaxy Tab coming soon, and me thinking of getting one.
Selection – Their movie and TV selection is not full of all the latest and greatest. If you need to see the latest DVD release the day it comes out, then Netflix is probably not for you. But then again none of the DVD by mail services are really for you.
Affiliate Program – I have heard good things about the Netflix affiliate program, even though it is part of the Google Affiliate network. I wanted to join, but was turned down. I guess I do not get enough traffic. Just wanted to mention it since it just kind of ticked me off that they turned me down.
The Ugly
DRM – This is probably why there is no Linux support. Also the reason I cannot use my WD TV HD Live to stream Netflix. There is a WD TV HD Live Plus that does support Netflix, but from what I have heard so far Netflix Canada is still not actually supported. I will put up with this kind of DRM more than if I was buying a disc simply because the service offers unlimited streaming.
Overall
Netflix will not be for everyone, but it is a great service for those that want quick and easy access to TV and movies. Anyone that has ever gone to the video store with kids should get this service. No more screaming and arguing about what to rent, or maybe that is just me and my kids. The Netflix instant streaming is perfect for me and our family. While we stopped going to the video store when I signed up with Zip.ca, now with Netflix I no longer need to find movies to have queued to mail to us. I just browse and click. As their selection improves this will be the only way to rent movies soon.
If the movie studios are smart (and I doubt that some are) they need to realize that their DVD sales will never go back up to where they were and they need to get on Netflix instant streaming. The cost of Netflix is low and the fact that you can watch it instantly is better than downloading a movie (not that I have ever done that). If there is a movie or TV show that I really must have I will still go and buy a plastic disc of it, but I would much prefer a digital copy that I can just play.
The price of $7.99 in Canada for instant, unlimited streaming is nothing and it is faster and cheaper than the local video store. Not to mention you never have to worry about returning a movie or going out in -30 Celsius. If you add it all up it is probably the greenest way to watch a movie, but that is a whole other post. Enough writing, I am off to go watch another movie on my Wii.
Bill C32 or the Reason I Hate Politics
If you have been following me on Twitter I want to apologize for all of the tweets about Bill C32. I don’t usually spend a lot of time following politics, mainly because I find it boring, but then the government goes and does something so tremendously stupid that I get a little frustrated and angry. I am not a lawyer so I won’t go into some long an drawn out explanation about Bill C32. For a very good plain english understanding of the Bill read Michael Geist blog. He does a great job of explaining the Bill the good and bad points. Of course if you read the official government information on the bill it is all roses. To be blunt that is nothing but total BULLSHIT! And that is why I HATE politics, they can’t even smell the shit they are shoveling.
To get on to why I hate Bill C32 is because of the whole digital lock problem. The bill does allow some more rights to people like allowing you to format shift music from CD’s to your MP3 player. It does not allow people to format shift video from DVD. Now the politicians will say it does as long as there is no digital lock. Since 98% of DVD produced these days have digital locks that does not leave many DVD’s that you can format shift to your iPod, Android phone, laptop, netbook etc.\
There is also another problem. I use Linux as my main operating system. I have a Windows computer that still runs Windows XP that we use as a family computer, but Linux is what I use most. Some of the things I use Linux for include playing DVD’s, backing up our DVD’s and you guessed it, format shifting content from my DVD’s to the computer to play using my Western Digital HD Live. All of those things will soon make me a criminal. The main reason is because Linux has to use something called DeCSS to decode a DVD because the DVD CCA will not provide a license for free software players.
Any rights that Bill C32 gives people are gone as soon as you break a digital lock. By playing a DVD on my Linux computer I am a criminal. By backing up one of the DVD’s I bought, I am a criminal for one breaking the lock on my Linux computer and then by copying it to my computer in a different format. Then to format shift that same content onto my Android phone, or play on my laptop I am a criminal. I never set out to be a criminal, and I am sure that the majority of people under 35 (I would say 40 but I like to think I am special ) will probably be with me. Even if they don’t use Linux if people want to format shift video they will need to break a digital lock on their DVD’s to copy and move the data.
Looking at what the US is like after Twelve Years under the DMCA it seems like we should be able to learn a lesson from them. Instead of passing laws like the DMCA in Canada lets actually look forward to creating a copyright law that will actually help instead of making us all criminals for doing things we are still going to do if the law passes.
Western Digital HD Live
I have been thinking of getting a media player or media computer for our family room but wanted something that was simple to use. I finally decided to pick up a Western Digital HD Live Media Player from Memory Express and I have to say I am impressed with it so far. I did not have a huge list if requirements. I wanted to be able to watch videos, browse photos and listen to music in the family room.
While the media player has a couple of USB ports to plug USB drives into the unit the real selling point for me was the wired network port. A wireless network adapter would have been great, but running a network cable into the family room was not a big deal and it means a faster connection. Once the unit was plugged into the network and my a/v receiver I was quickly able to browse my network.
Using the media player has been easy. It has played every media format I have tried to play on it so far. Everything from Xvid Avi files, 3gp video files recorded from my phone, to complete .iso backup files of our DVD’s. Streaming the data from my desktop has been no problem. No lag, jerkiness or delay. Most of my music is either MP3 or Ogg format and both have played flawlessly. Photos have been great to browse through. No problems looking through them at all.
I have only really tried the YouTube feature of the media player. It plays the content well enough, but finding the content on YouTube takes some patience to enter a search term since you only have a simple remote control to enter characters with. I have not tried option to browse Flickr photos yet. Pandora and the other Internet radio options are not really possible here in Canada.
If you are looking for a media player take a look at the Western Digital HD Live Media Player. I am very please with it and can see getting a lot of use from it. I got mine on sale from Memory Express with free shipping. That saved me around $10.00 in shipping. Not bad considering it was also the best priced at $119.00. The fact that it showed up on my doorstep the next day was a real bonus. If Memory Express does not have it on sale anymore you can also find it at TigerDirect.
The Big Easy
I enjoy barbecuing and now that spring is here I have already been out cooking up some of our favourites. For Christmas one of the purchases was a Char-Broil Big Easy infrared turkey cooker. My wife and I had discussed getting a turkey deep fryer but the idea of all that oil and the fire hazard just did not seem worth it.
Just before Christmas I was browsing through the Walmart seasonal section and noticed way up on a shelf a whole rack full of Char-Broil BigEasy infrared cookers with a price tag around $55.00. I grabbed my cell phone and did a quick search for some reviews to see what the deal was with these cookers and why they might be so cheap. The majority of reviews looked good and the price was certainly right, so I went to customer service to get someone to help me get one down and I walked out with one.
Fast forward to Easter and I finally put it all together and got it ready to cook our Easter turkey. I am happy to report that this was a great purchase! Our turkey took roughly two hours to cook and it tasted absolutely incredible! It was nice and crispy on the outside and the inside was juicy and tender. It could possibly be the best turkey we have ever cooked. My wife is making a list of other foods to try in it over the summer.
Not only did the turkey turn out great it made the whole neighbourhood smell delicious. I am sure our neighbours mouths were watering the whole time it was cooking. We might have to invite some of the neighbours over for a turkey so they can find out how good it is.
Cleanup was also easy. I let the cooker run for a little while after the turkey was out to cook off what ever was still in the bottom. The cooking basket fit in the dishwasher and was washed up with the rest of the dishes. Certainly much easier to clean up than cooking the turkey in the over in a roaster.
We can’t wait to try other things in our Char-Broil Big Easy. It was certainly worth the $55.00 or so dollars I paid for it around Christmas time. Still not sure why it was so cheap but if you can find one at that price I highly suggest you pick one up. It will make the best turkey you have ever tasted. Even at over $100.00 that Amazon has it on sale for it is worth the price.