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General Review Technology

Roku SoundBridge 1000

I just picke up one of these Roku SoundBridge 1000 boxes to fiddle with. So far, I’ve found it to be pretty cool and relatively easy to setup. This version is WiFi (b) enabled, so I just find some speakers and a power plug and I’m up and running anywhere. It is reasonably easy to go, now with the Windows UPNP functions working.

The downside, as it always is for me, is that none of the server software that talks to the Roku can handle the volume of music I want to play. Simply put: they choke. Currently the Windows Media Connect service running on my home server is pegged at 100% CPU utilization and over 163MB of memory usage. This is after it has been trying to digest my music for the past 6 hours or so. Guess there is still room for improvement with these devices. On the other hand, iTunes and SlimServer do work with smaller quantities of music, so it isn’t all busted dreams.

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Review

Google Desktop Search

I have been beta testing the Google Desktop Search feature for a few weeks now. Since it has finally gone live I can talk about it a bit and share my particular insights and opinions of it.

First off, I have to say that I’ve been waiting for this for some time. I have the unique privledge (or obligation) to be inside the tech industry and have access to some of the folks who invent cool stuff. For a few years I’ve been asking Microsoft about the ability to search deeper into the PC based on keywords, much like internet search engines do. Come talk to us when Longhorn is ready, they’d say. Well, Google has *almost* made me stop waiting for that day. Sometimes knowing people on the inside is good, and in this case I had some time to play with the Google Desktop Search prior to it becoming public.

First off, it searches Outlook email, most Office files, some IM chats, some media files, and of course local web page histories. It has a locally run crawler that indexes these files whenever there is idle time on the PC, which is most of the time unless you are playing games. There is a nifty status page that tells you what it has indexed and when, so you know if that confidential email you just read is in the cache or not. Best of all, it responds fast and in most times ranks things by relevance, which is good.

Where things go a bit off course for me are the following areas:

  • No ability to search for files by creation date or range
  • No ability to search by folder name
  • No searching across network drives, even if they are mapped to drive letters
  • No image searching based on EXIF data (or any other data)
  • No support for Trillian, Yahoo, or MSN chat text
  • No option to open attachments on Outlook email messages

I’ll always find something to complain about, but this is a good start. Sure, I have to bounce back and forth between a standard Explorer file search and Desktop Search, but I find myself using Desktop Search more often now. I’m sure Google will continue to make this search better, and I’m sure I’ll keep finding more stuff for them to do. I just wonder how they will pay for it in the long run.

And to Microsoft I say the gauntlet has been thrown down. This is the bar you have to jump over and from an ease of use and performance standpoint, its a very high bar. A standard, Microsoft version 1.0 product won’t do in this case, you’re going to have to come up with something much better. I am betting this will be one of the more interesting product comparisons for the coming years, and it has the power to define who truly is in control of my desktop interface.

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Review

Daily Goodness

I am constantly reminded of the absolute neccessity to watch TV on a regular basis by watching The Daily Show. Well, at least 4 days a week anyhow. I’m amazed that so much satire and information can be packed into 22 minutes (give or take).

If you haven’t watched this gem or experienced the genius that is Jon Stewart you are missing out. Go there, watch the clips, and tune in immediately, if not sooner.

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Movies Review

Movies: The Village

I recently saw the latest visceral screen fest from M. Night Shyamalan called “The Village”. Like most reviewers, I decided early on who and what the “bad things” were and I had a reasonable idea what was outside the forest. That said, I still enjoyed most of the film and there were several moments where the movie provided a scare great enough to get most of the audience screaming.

The cast was also quite good, with the newcomer Bryce Dallas Howard really stealing the show. What I wonder is this: is Mr. Shyamalan getting lazy or are audiences just expecting more out of films? “The Sixth Sense” was really a break out film, but his follow-on work seems a bit more obvious, more predictable. Maybe I just need more special effects and character development in my films, I dunno.

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Review

Test Drive: GMC Envoy

I spent a few minutes driving around in a 2004 GMC Envoy today and found it to be not to bad as far as SUVs go. It was a pretty smooth and quiet ride compared to the 4Runner. The inline 6 cylinder engine was smooth and felt peppy. The space inside seemed pretty good, with plenty of usable space in the back. The only downers were the price at around $34K for a decent set of options and features and it felt a bit cheap on the interior quality to me. I also felt a little claustrophobic by the oversized dash and hard to see out of the window areas. But, maybe I’m just not used to the car. More test drives should help me determine what is good and what isn’t.

Right now this gets my “ok” vote.

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Review

Game: Battlefield Vietnam

If you’ve ever watched Apocalypse Now or Full Metal Jacket and said “I wish I could do that” you ship just came in. Battlefield Vietnam is the successful follow-on to EA’s much played and modified Battlefield 1942, developed by DICE. It is first person, multiplayer (up to 64) mayhem with tons of vehicles to drive or fly and lots of weapons to master.

It’s for the PC only, but the online game play and 70’s music track make it worth playing. This level of interactive gaming was only dreamed about just two years ago. Now you can go up against 63 other soldiers in a knock down, drag out, inch by inch war to take back the flag for your team, rescue hostages, or any of a dozen other scenarios. Highly recommended.

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Movies Review

DVD: School of Rock

Jack Black. Joan Cusack. A bunch of kids. Rock and roll. Battle of the bands. What more is there to say? The movie is School of Rock and you need to see it. That’s all there is to it. Do it, or Jack will come to your house and eat everything in your fridge.

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Movies Review

At the Movies

Saw Black Hawk Down this weekend. Powerful stuff. Not one person talked, laughed, or otherwise cut up when leaving the theater. I suppose I could see where critics may have panned the film for character development (or lack thereof), but it is still a good movie.

If you have ever questioned why military types are cocky, self-agrandizing, or otherwise egotistical go see this movie. I have a new respect for them and their job, even if the policy behind their actions make little sense.