Video

This is actually easy, though seems to be hard to do more than the memory of the player itself, and you have to use WMP (I have WMP 11). Just plug in the Nick Npower Fusion while Windows Media Player is open and WMP will ask you what you would like to do with the device. Choose whatever you feel appropriate.

You will now have a box on the right side of WMP that says something like "drag and drop files to sync", so find the video you want to play on the Npower and drag it into that box. Then just hit the sync button, it will convert your movies to play on the Npower. To get them off the Npower (and onto a SD card for example) simply open Windows Explorer (shortcut WIN-E) and you will see in "My Computer" your Npower, click on it and find your converted movie and copy it back to your computer and then delete it from the Npower. This way you can build a library of compatible files without exhausting the internal memory on the Npower.

I am pretty sure you can use Windows Media Encoder to batch process videos locally, but I haven't had luck finding the right settings to get it to work.

Games

Hi, I figured this one out :D What you need to do is get the .jar files from various websites, then get a program to turn .jar files into .jad files. I placed both the .jar and .jad, with the same names, into the java_vm folder. It may only need the .jad but I haven't tested it yet. The easiest way to get those games is to search for "mobile java games" or something like that. And the program I got to convert jar to jad was simply dropping the file into the box on the program, and the jad file was made in the same location as the .jar. Good luck and enjoy :D

via

much like the sketchy history of MySpace.com, the rise of Twitter has had its share of bumps and bruises. On Thursday (May 1, 2008) there was some discussion (see here and here) that Twitter might be abondoning Ruby on Rails (RoR), the web framework Twitter was originally programmed in.

There was also an article on Eweek about Twitter proving how great RoR is which Venture Beat chalked up to bad timing.

The Eweek article is a typical fluff piece but does have some interesting comments from Twitter Senior Engineer Britt Selvitelle, who I assume was speaking for the company. He opens with a nice quote about how great RoR has been for them:

"if we need to drop down to a lower-level language we are prepared to, but we haven't had to." In the future, he said, "We might have to optimize certain parts of the system with C++ or something, but as of yet, we haven't had to." [Emphasis mine]

Then he closes with a seemingly contradictory quote:

"We use Ruby as our primary language. We have plenty of back-end architecture in other languages. Especially prototypes. We still use Rails and have no plans to discontinue this in the future." [Emphasis mine]

So which is Mr. Selvitelle? Has RoR solved all your problems? Or have you switched some things to other languages? Something you said you haven't had to do yet?

According to Evan Williams, Co-Founder at Twitter, lots of RoR code has been replaced:

FWIW: Twitter currently has no plans to abandon RoR. Lots of our code is not in RoR, already, though. Maybe that's why people are confused.

I can see why Twitter has been having so many growing pains if its own engineers don't even know what language it is programmed in.

On a final note, I love Twitter, it is one of the few services I have even bothered to sign up for.

<Wolfpaws> I hate being mocked at by people who don't even read a manual.
<hatzis> lol
<hatzis> mate i read the karma sutra if that counts
<Wolfpaws> hatzis: You want to stay in the channel? Go read the manual first.
<flavious> karma? :)
<hatzis> yeah
<Jaymon> flavious: you know, it's like the kama sutra, but for your chi
<Wolfpaws> hahahaha
<flavious> yeah, for the karma
<garrett__> my chi isn't that flexible :(
<flavious> stretching your soul
<hatzis> yeah
<garrett__> i sprained my ethics last time i tried position #23
<hatzis> thats right
<Jaymon> lol
<Wolfpaws> My soul has long paws :]
<flavious> hahahaha

funny #php irc chat because he switched kama with karma for the kama sutra, garrett__'s was the funniest.

With the death of HD-DVD, there has been a firesale on players, and in every HD-DVD deal thread on Fatwallet the BluRay guys have to chime in, well, philmont had some words for them...

I really can't understand having some kind of emotional attachment to a company or data format. I know probably most of the BR owners probably actually do have a life and do not do this, but for some, they remind me of the worst of the Ron Paul fanatics. They both show up where not wanted, say things that are not entirely true, and insult you if you don't adopt their views.

I feel the same way...

Update 2-28-08

Jeff Atwood has a great post on douchebaggery that goes along with the above sentiment, the whole post is worth a read, but here is a choice quote about David Heinemeier Hansson, the guy that created Ruby on Rails:

David expressed the same sentiments in a 2007 technology prediction piece.

"Apple will continue to trounce everyone else for the preferred geek platform. The stigma of being a Web programmer still using Windows will increase."

Here's what I don't understand about statements like this. They have exactly the opposite effect that the speaker probably intends. There are two possible reactions:

1. Wow, David's right. I made the wrong choice in my career. It's high time I looked into OS X and Rails programming. They sound great!

2. F****************k you.

Guess which reaction is more common?

The past couple days I have been knee deep refactoring the Javascript libraries we use.

While looking for a solution to a problem I came across this slashdot post with some funny comments responding to a developer's claim of having developed a 25,000 line javascript application:

ignavius said:

"25,000 lines of Javascript ? What could you possibly be doing which requires that level of Javascript interaction ?????"

to which walt-sjc responded, and which made me laugh hysterically:

1000 lines of application code, and 24,000 lines of browser compatibility code.

Anyone who has spent anytime using javascript would know just how funny walt-sjc's comment actually is.

scene: reading about total cost of ownership between maintaining an old collection of game cartridges and consoles or just buying them on the Wii at Ars Technica.

BForrester said...

When I fire up the NES Virtual Console, I smack the Wii around and blow air into the slot until I hyperventilate.

All for nostalgia.

That brought back some memories, and made me laugh...

Scene: Forum discussion about Circuit City's falling stock price and recent problems...

AdamK47 said, "When Circuit City is gone how am I supposed to get my $100 monster cables?"

To which ShockwaveVT responded, "Go across the street to Best Buy, where they cost $105."

But the zinger came from marvdmartian, "Better yet, go to the going out of business clearance sale at CompUSA, where, after applying the 75% off savings, it'll only cost you $110!!"

The whole exchange made me laugh.

So I have an old RCA1310a remote and an HC50rx receiver, they are about 10 years old now.

When I switched the batteries on the remote it forgot what code it should use to turn on a light. I couldn't find anything online about this but by dumb luck I managed to get the remote working again.

I basically held code search down until the little red light went on, then I pressed the home automation button and then pressed the light on button (channel up) until the little red light went off, then all of a sudden the remote works.

This article on the Canadian Recording Industry Association feeling that the tax on recordable media is making Canadians think they free to copy music delivered some interesting comments in the forum discussion...

All13d commented:

Since when do you have to pay the industry in order to make a second copy for private use? Fair use, anyone?

Which was hilariously rebutted by danchr:

There's this thing called a “border” between the United States and Canada, and they are what is called “sovereign countries”. This means that Canadian laws apply to Canada, and American laws to the U.S. To my knowledge, “fair use” is an exclusively American concept. Canadian legislators could in principle ban any and all copying of anything, whatsoever, should they see so fit. Even though the U.S. laws may not recognise this, they have no validity outside the bounds of the United States of America.

I don't know why Americans get a reputation of thinking our laws are the only ones that matter.

from the 101 dumbest moments in business 2003:

In an attempt to boost its profile, the Protestant church in Germany hires ad agency Melle Pufe to come up with a slogan to attract new parishioners. After nearly $1.5 million in billings and head-scratching of biblical proportions--during which the firm's creative director calls Protestantism "a problematic brand" because it lacks a central figure, such as a pope--the new slogan is announced: "Protestants ask questions."

Gosh, if only there was some central figure, someone who could be considered the head of the church. Well, I can't think of anyone...