media nostalgia ... excellent!

[lordsmurf]

Watch this video:
http://homepage.mac.com/hirshberg/iMovieTheater5.html


Everybody here will probably enjoy this.
This is the kind of video project I really envy. Especially
considering it was done pre-NLE (for the most part, at least
in regards to most of us and our experience).

[Capmaster]

I'm at work so I watched it without sound, but ...wow! Beautiful work there 8)

[lordsmurf]

It's pretty funny, you should listen to it. It's a witty take on the early days of Internet and a media convergence that still has not happened.

[yoda313]

Hello,

witty take on the early days of Internet and a media convergence that still has not happened.

Well I haven't watched it yet but many things have happened with the net. And if you count Microsofts Media Center edition of XP there has been a TON of convergence.

Not to mention all of the wifi media adapters for video/audio from pc to home theater set ups that are out there

Kevin

[lordsmurf]

That's not convergence.

Convergence is a failed (to date) attempt to merge the virtual worlds, the print world, and the video world/broadcast world.

Magazines, DVDs, websites, streaming video, newspapers ... everything was to merge. Don't want to have a peper delivered? Go to www.yourfavoritenewspaper.whatever and print the PDF to your printer. The tv commercial talked too fast? Don't worry, your computer automatically logged the web address via the PC microphone.

We see a small trickle of things, but believe me, Microsoft has never been an endorser of the concept.

Convergence is bigger than the Internet ever hoped to be, and involved MUCH more than the Internet itself, even. And much of the ideas behind it are still undiscovered. Still dreams, and the dreamers are waiting for the next opportunity.

[yoda313]

Hello,

Lordsmurf - Gotcha

Yeah we're getting there..

But look how long HDTV took to become a reality.

Kevin

[Capmaster]

Hello,

Lordsmurf - Gotcha

Yeah we're getting there..

But look how long HDTV took to become a reality.

Kevin

HDTV is anything but mainstream. Wait a few more years until the jury comes in on it

Lots of things are a reality, but that doesn't necessarily make them practical or desirable.

I see the main problem with any "grand master plan" that Lordsmurf is referring to is that it gets bastardized by everyone who has his own agenda. Idealistic notions are fine, but they're almost universally unachievable because humans and human greed is always part of the equation

[yoda313]

Hello,

they're almost universally unachievable because humans and human greed is always part of the equation

I think part of it is somethings we DON'T WANT TO CHANGE. Like EBOOKS.

People still read REAL BOOKS. Somethings won't be replaced completely by the computer.

Kevin

[Doramius]

I remember, as part of Convergence, RadioShack tried to come out with some barcode reader called the CAT. This was in 1999 or 2000. It was supposed to read barcodes off of several different things and be able to bring you right to the site of the manufacturer. It also was supposed to have some audio cable that allowed your computer to hear a small frequency in commercials and shows, and automatically pop-up a window asking if you want to go to that site, or store the sites in memory, and you can view them later.

They gave the CATs and the software for free during a certain time period hoping it would take off. The whole thing flopped, and I don't know what's happened to it since. I should try and find a CAT and open it up to see what kind of circuitry was used for that thing. Maybe I can make a conversion unit for my LaserDisc player.

Convergence is crap, but a very plausible dream. Back to the Future II had insight of convergence, but we all know that 2015 isn't far away and I don't think traffic has been cleared up enough for me to get my $40k hover conversion when they become invented.

[yoda313]

Hello,

I think I still have a CAT. I'll try to dig it up.

Kevin

[Heywould3]

Hello,

they're almost universally unachievable because humans and human greed is always part of the equation

I think part of it is somethings we DON'T WANT TO CHANGE. Like EBOOKS.

People still read REAL BOOKS. Somethings won't be replaced completely by the computer.

Kevin

could you imagine if they could combine the "real doll" with a "virtual woman? i hate to say it.. but women would be a lot more easy to get along with if they know we could order and program our own.. lol.. damn now thats funny.. a smokin hot woman that did everything you wanted and didnt bitch and .......... well you can fill in the blanks...

with the right technology a women would be one of the first things to be replaced.. books no women yes..

[lordsmurf]

:CueCat

DigitalConvergence technology
http://www.digitalconvergence.com/products/

It failed pretty darn quick (within 2 years or so):
http://www.digitalconvergence.com/index.html

Came out in 2000. Was in use in many AP papers and major news stations. It died silently in 2001/2002.


That was merely one company trying for convergence. Their implementation was a bit shallow.

[Doramius]

It was a legitimate attemt at convergence though. One of the VERY few attemps at massively trying to do it. I also think people have better things to do than to scan their Campbell's Soup labels to visit the site. Nice idea, but I wasn't too thrilled with it either. I might have some hanging in storage somewhere. Just like a Persian Cat, it went flat on it's face.

[Capmaster]

I still have my CueCat reader somewhere. Radio Shack gave it away free when you got one of their catalogs.

IMS, it had an adapter and went between the PC and the keyboard.

[Doramius]

it was either the keyboard or the mouse. I knew it was PS2. It wasn't USB compliant though. I found out once trying to put the funky little adapter on one when I first got one. Couldn't figure why my computer kept automatically shutting down. I really don't think it should have been doing that at all, but after I placed it in the PS2 port, that system ran fine. I don't have that PC anymore though. Long gone and sole on eBay to some other poor soul that wanted a Jabil Mobo and 800Mhz processor.

[lordsmurf]

There are sites where you can hack these things and do all kinds of stuff. Some of the last ones were USB 1.1.

[vitualis]

I think part of it is somethings we DON'T WANT TO CHANGE. Like EBOOKS.

People still read REAL BOOKS. Somethings won't be replaced completely by the computer.

Kevin

I think more importantly, people don't want to change unless the thing that is replacing it has some sort of palpable improvement.

I want to read ebooks... on a thin light display device with a viewing area the size of a medium paper back. In my mind, something with the weight and thickness of a piece of perspex would be perfect. This is entirely possible. We have numerous bistable display technologies including a variety of LCD based technologies as well as "e-ink" --> high contrast, high detail, no power required except to refresh. Some will even do colour. Coat it with TDK's new protective layer and it becomes indestructable.

With cheap flash memory technology, you could fit dozens of novels/texts for limited costs. With online publishing and distribution, periodicals and subscriptions could be delivered at near zero costs... Yet, no one will MAKE such a device...

Regards.

[Doramius]

I think part of it is somethings we DON'T WANT TO CHANGE. Like EBOOKS.

People still read REAL BOOKS. Somethings won't be replaced completely by the computer.

Kevin

I think more importantly, people don't want to change unless the thing that is replacing it has some sort of palpable improvement.

I want to read ebooks... on a thin light display device with a viewing area the size of a medium paper back. In my mind, something with the weight and thickness of a piece of perspex would be perfect. This is entirely possible. We have numerous bistable display technologies including a variety of LCD based technologies as well as "e-ink" --> high contrast, high detail, no power required except to refresh. Some will even do colour. Coat it with TDK's new protective layer and it becomes indestructable.

With cheap flash memory technology, you could fit dozens of novels/texts for limited costs. With online publishing and distribution, periodicals and subscriptions could be delivered at near zero costs... Yet, no one will MAKE such a device...

Regards.

That's mostly due to the fact that it's so inexpensive. The cost to make a typical paperback book in mass production is less than $1.00 USD. Of course this is nothing new to people, but the biggest cost involved is copyright. If you do it digitally, what cost is involved? Near nothing. Let's say a website pays $500 a month for unlimited bandwidth use. If he charges $5 per download for 100 downloads by customers, the site cost is made up. Let's say the book is a recent best seller. You may be looking at about 10,000+ hits a day. Add a library of 5000 books to be downloaded. That's mass money and they are raping people at $5 a book. This is with extremely exadgerated costs. At $1 per download, they are still making out like bandits. So why don't they do it. Because at $8-10 for a paperback, with only a $1 cost to make it, brings in more money. There is also fear that book store would go out of business. I honestly say do it this way to save internet traffic. Books automatically get sent to a bookstores server. There are little kiosks with a card swiper on them and a base station or plug for certain E-Reader panels. Plug your panel in and download your books once you've paid for them. Minimizes traffic on the internet and keeps people at bookstores.

Will it ever happen? Highly unlikely, but it's a feasible situation.

[vitualis]

You are of course right. This is where the corporatised world is probably not in the best interest of society as a whole.

Perhaps the problem is with the business acceptance. There are now perfectly functional "public library" models of ebooks (e.g., with the MobiPocket format). The "library" has only a limited number of each "book". They can be checked out by a patron and in the process, it is no longer available to any body else. The eBook is encrypted not only to the specific device that checked out the eBook, but is also encrypted to time (e.g., 7 days or 14 days). After that period of time, the eBook is no longer readable and it reappears in the library (i.e., it has been "returned").

You could optionally "purchase" the borrowed book (i.e., it is no longer time-locked).

Yes, I'm sure that some people will try to hack the model to get eBooks for free, but the model simulates that of a public library. I personally wouldn't really be over bothered with cracking a "borrowed" eBook if I knew that I could reborrow it in the future if I wanted to read it again. I would willing pay some sort of yearly subscription to use such a "library" as long as it was as reasonably well stocked as any standard library.

The other thing of course, is with periodicals -- magazines and journals. The eBook model is perfect for syncronisation with on-line publications (e.g., news sites, blogs, etc.) which at present do not really have a portable viewing platform. I would also, willing pay NEAR full price for eBook subscriptions to things that I normally already pay for the paper version -- as long it isn't limited in some sort of retarded way (e.g., New Scientist, various medical journals).

Regards.

[Doramius]

Agree wholly. I really see a strong ability to use this technology and I know of several people that agree, but it seems that large businesses are the ones that are holding the technology back. Stores like Best Buy, Circuit City, and various others sell some of the platforms. And they can be found all over online, but why aren't there more places offering the eBooks? I never hear that the individual stores don't want to carry them. The big response I get from book stores is "Corporate Hasn't Allowed It." Why?

I think we all know the answer, but "corporate" won't admit it publicly. But I would definitely be willing to pay $7-10 for a popular Classic, New Release and/or Best Seller. $5-7 for various other books. $20-50 for an annual membership to a Library, that has optional purchase of books. $10-20 a month for DESIRED popular magazines or newspapers would be very generous, and easy. It would be great for people who travel to go to an airport or hotel kiosk and update their Reader Platform for a paper or magazine they enjoy. And they could be at or from anywhere in the world.

Hacking would most definitely be illegal and I'm sure that when you go to a kiosk you could get a refusal to receive a download if you have such types of software on your Reader. This would limit the amount of hacking done. The libraries and bookstores could be constantly updated about such software hacking like an Antivirus program is updated. I just think companies have more fear of losing business than pushing forward with technology.