Bonkers!
Well, the experiment lasted one week. The idea of
broadcasting new shows through revver.com just isn't going to work. I was having problems uploading the new show. I think the file name of the new show and previous show were a little too similar. So I delete the previous show.
And, as I was uploading the new show, for the third time, I decided to cancel the process. I thought, even with the file resample and downsized, it's still large. Even with DSL, it still takes a little time to upload. They (revver) are going to take about 6 hours to okay the video and get it online. That's how long it took, with the previous show. So, I came to the conclusion, this was not one of my better ideas.
But hey, something good did come out of it. Look at that that nice, new layout on the Home Page.
Still sticking with the new format, we will be archiving 12 weeks of shows (3 months). Right now, the stream has been purged of a few tracks. I did this as part of the plans with revver. Yeah. Shit.
Anyway. We're working through it.
Santora
6//10/2008
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I'll Be... Damned!
You spend a few years working on a website, you would think after a while, you can say you know what you're doing. But... NO. I still haven't a clue.
All this time, I was building this site with my monitor set at medium resolution. I really never took notice, because the backgrounds I've use for the pages, weren't that critical, when it came to measurement.
But, then I reconstructed The Penthouse, with various backgrounds needing exacting measurements.
I didn't realize this, until I viewed my site on my friend's computer: Who has a 19 inch monitor as I do, but set at high resolution. And I checked out The Penthouse and said out loud... WTF?
So, I now have my monitor set at high resolution, and I fixed the background images.
Though, I know nobody with a monitor, larger than 19 inches.
And wouldn't you know? I can't post my debut show through revver.com, because, revver is doing some upgrading. And everything is kind of haywire right now, at revver.com.
And just when you think nothing else could possibly go wrong. My host, with their new and improved server is down.
I'm thinking the time has come to find a new host, with a more reliable server. To hell with new and improved.
Santora
6/3/2008
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Bad Buy
Buying electronics, can be a fleeting proposition. Now more than ever. There is a wave of big screen televisions, bulky units pre-dating flat panels. At one
time, these beasts were as pricey as the flat screens of today, but are now dirt cheap. Of course there is a buyer beware catch: These televisions are analogs, not digital. And in a couple of years, every TV and Cable station is going full digital. And you'll eventually need a converter box for them.
I'll bet you thought everything is already digital? Transformation can be a slow process. Especially for those still running 8-tracks. And of course there is still a market for vinyl records, and for the same reason electric guitar amplifiers still use transistor tubes. Warm tones.
Digital can have a cold sound to it, which turn a lot of people off. Then again, there is that spirit of anti-progress, as well. Such as those who still have 8-tracks. And I will admit frustration, as well, on my part. It's not cheap converting a record collection, to cassettes, then to CD's: As well, your movie collection from VHS to DVD.
But as time goes by and tape decks become harder to find, and the the ones you do find aren't that good. And your old units break down, and the parts are harder to find, you are left with little choice.
You will be converting, resistance is futile.
Case in point: I was in need of a new VHS machine, as well, a DVD player. I was looking at DVD / VHS Combo machines, where I could record the stuff I have on VHS to DVD. When these machines first came out, as with all new technologies, they were expensive. But the prices have been dropping, and I came across this machine, from a company called Insignia: Model NS-DRVCR.
I guess, sometimes you really do get what you pay for. sometimes, things are cheap for a reason. Just as those out-dated, analog big screens.
And the Insignia Model NS-DRVCR is a piece of junk. Play back quality on the tape deck is terrible. And recording on a VHS tape is even worse. And the DVD player doesn't seem to record any better. And playing commercial DVDs is a hit and miss. If you have a DVD with a lot of information, it doesn't play right, if it plays at all. Many of my DVDs, such as Terminator 2 / The Ultimate Edition, skips and freezes. Others, it just spits out and I get error messages, that the DVD can not be read. Yet on other DVD players, the disks play just fine.
Oh, and yes, every disk takes forever to read. And I don't know what crappy chip and memory this thing has in it? But I'm constantly unplugging this machine, to clear the memory, or at least get it to work right for the DVDs it is willing to play for me.
On top of that, it has a cooling fan in the back of the machine, that is grinding and noisy. It sounds like it's ready to break.
So if you're one of these people who hate progress, and look for reasons to still play with 8-track, the Insignia Model NS-DRVCR is for you.
However, if you embrace the digital age, you'll do better to pan out a few extra bucks, for a DVD / VHS Combo which actually... works.
Santora
7/5/2007
