We will be streaming the return of the big show LIVE this Saturday at jupiterbroadcasting.com/live we are not sure exactly what time, but we are aiming for 1:00 PM Pacific. As the event gets closer, will update everyone on our twitter feeds twitter.com/ChrisLAS and twitter.com/BryanLAS
We hope to see you there, and have you join us in the IRC chat room while we stream.
IRC Server: chat1.ustream.tv
IRC Room: #jupiterbroadcasting
Just started to setup the new MacBook Pro work bought me. I thought I would record my first impressions quickly in a short video. One thing I left out of the video, that after using the laptop for a bit longer is I realized the corners of the MacBook Pro feel a bit sharp on my wrists while I type if I have my arms off to the side of the machine… That’s not how I typically type… Because that would be ridiculous, but go figure it is how I am typing as I write this 
Check out the video below for more of my thoughts:
The following are my notes on what I have found works best for posting videos to YouTube in HD on our YouTube channel, that after some processing on YouTube’s part will be available in HD. The below steps focus on Adobe Media Encoder, but there is nothing specific to that application, these settings would work for any encode.
These settings have been developed after a lot of trial and error, and I have found they produce great looking video that is not huge in file size.
Step 1: Upload a HD video to YouTube with the following specifications:
-When using Adobe Media Encoder -
Video:
Compression: H.264
Size: 1280×720 px (HD/High Definition)
Bit Rate: 3000-5000 kbits/sec (Most say 4000 Kbits is the sweet spot)
Deinterlaced
Frame Rate: 30
Field Order: Non (Progressive)
Pixel Aspect Ratio: Square Pixles (1.0)
Audio:
Apple Lossless 32Khz or 44Khz Stereo, or MP3 128kbps or AAC 128kbps.
Un-check everything else in Filters, Alternates and Others
After using those settings YouTube will take a lifetime to transcode. The first available video tends to look like junk, they are still processing the HD video in the background.
Step 2: Enable High Definition:
To enable HD viewing on a high definition YouTube video, just add to the end of the URL:
“&fmt=22″(without the quotes) or click the Watch in HD link below the video.
To enable HD embedding, first copy the video embed code and paste it to your web page. Then add
“&ap=%2526fmt%3D22″(without the quotes) at the end of the video URL in the embed code, note that you need to add it in two places (the lines with your video ID).
To get a widescreen embed player, just change the sizes values “width” and “height” to “595″ and “360″.
The above notes are for Adobe Media Encoder, but those generally settings will work for any encoding application, including ffmpeg and even QuickTime.
Starting back in Jully of 2008 Windows XP started to give Linux quite a run for its money in our web stats, surprisingly that trend seemed to contiune for a few months straight. It was growing so fast for a while that I suspected it might be an error in the reporting software’s numbers.
Once I dug deeper I also noticed the iTunes RSS client agent was growing at the same rate as Windows XP was in our general web stats. Because I am not the smartest man in the world, it took me a few minutes to put the obvious bits of the puzzle together. July… What happened in July? Ah yes, the iPhone 3G was released! “That must be it” I thought to my self. People bought an iPhone, then fired up Windows XP for iTunes and iPhone sycning and starting using that environment. This was an interesting snapshot in time for us, do we continue down the strictly Linux focused content even though our webstats are quickly trending to Linux being the minority or do we mix it up, and go more of a balance between Windows, Mac and Linux. We spent some time kicking this idea back and forth and never really came to a final decision.
Though through the process of analyzing this type of shift in our viewer/listner base we realized that the best way to reach more people, would be to promote the technologies we felt passionate about through a more realistic approach. We came to the realization that if you want to convince someone that technology X is better than technology Y you need to speak to them like an adult, and not like a religious zealot that only sees things in basic black and white.
If I show you doing something fun or intresting using the technology I’m excited about, like say a Drobo, that is going to be a lot more effective of a message then me just simply ranting about how great a Drobo is.
It’s with this approach that we have focused our new format of shows, like In Depth look and while we have only been at it for just a few months, I am so happy with the results we are seeing. Honestly I think the data speaks for it self. Since the change to the new format 2.4 million people have watched our videos, and we’ve reached entirely new areas of the technology community that we’ve never spoken with before. I get emails daily from people who are being introduced to new technology through our videos, and emails from old pros who just love the content and find it engaging.
On top of that, I’m pleased to see that Linux has again climbed to a comfortable lead in our web statistics, to which I primarily contribute new eyes and ears to our content:
Our new format understands and appreciates that not everyone uses computers in the same way we do. I have no doubt that this is going to be successful for us, and proves that there is a right approach that encourages audience growth and learning, and a wrong approach that is thick headed and talks down to their audience by not respecting their choices and their reasoning.
I hope everyone continues to enjoy the content we produce at Jupiter Broadcasting and I can’t wait to meet even more of you that are out there!
Since I’ve gotten a GSM phone, I’ve had to suffer the dreaded speaker buzz at my computer desk. Nothing brakes my concentration more than my speakers going crazy with that crazy sound. I set out on a mission to reduce it with a simple trick:
Do you have an easy and cheap tip to get rid of that buzz? I’d love to hear it! Leave me a comment of your trick!
I’ve published an update to this review that you’ll probably find more useful.
They say for the average bear it takes about 10,000 hours of doing something before you become an expert. While I am not quite there yet, I’d guess I am nearing it with the many late nights and 48 hour week-end marathons I have pulled recording and editing Podcasts.
Throughout this time I have gotten my chance to try out different styles of microphones, some good and some great.
I put together quite the video, with different samples from each microphone and a bit more information than is covered in this post, so I highly recommend you check it out:
If you’re shooting video, especially since a lot of online video sites now support HD video you’ll want to get good audio to match that great video quality. I don’t have a lot of experience with camera microphones, but the one I current use and like a lot is the Rode VideoMic, and it does a great job. It’s a shot gun Mic, meaning it picks up audio from what it is directly pointing at. Very handy for avoiding SOME of the noise from the tap drive in my HV20 camera.
I bought mine from Amazon.com, and they say only 3 left in stock.. So if you want one buy one soon:
Next up is the Mic I like to use when I am recording in front of my computer. I have a Logitech Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000, which is a nice cam with a built in Mic… But after using the mic built into the webcam I have found the audio quality lacking. It seems to distort from time to time and does not sound great.
So I opted to pickup a USB connected Snowball from Blue. Most the time I try to have it just out of the camera shot, but close enough to pick me up decently. From a looks standpoint it might just be the coolest looking microphone I have ever seen. From a sound standpoint (which is all that matters) is it decent. The quality is not as great as some of my high-end mics, it does not sound as warm or deep to me. But when I listen to it, it may be the most honest sounding mic, the most true to my real voice. Plus since it is sort of my true to my real voice, that does give me a wider range of tweaking I can do in post editing. I should note, that all tweaking must be done in software, since you can’t run the Snowball through a mixing board since it is USB only and connects directly to your computer.
I also bought the Blue Snowball from Amazon, where you can also read some other buyers thoughts:
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Blue Microphones Snowball USB Microphone Bundle: Musical Instruments ASIN: B000EOPQ7E |
My old standby, the mic Bryan and I have used for years in our shows is the MXL 990s. These are condenser mics (meaning they need to be supplied phantom power) and they have great sound. On top of the great sound, they come at a great price. You can pick up an MXL 990 with shock mount and carrying case (handy if you record at different locations) for $60.
These microphones (4 of them to be exact) are what we use even today to record our CastaBlasta podcast.
They might not produce radio broadcaster quality sound, but they will sound better than nearly every other podcast out there, and they are a heck of a bargain. Like my other microphones, I have bought four MXL 990s from Amazon:
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ASIN: B0002GIRP2 |
The last microphone in the roundup is my favorite by far. The amazing Heil PR-40! I’ve always been impressed with the sound quality Leo Laporte has gotten out of 64kbps mono MP3 files that he releases for his TWiT podcasts, so I set off to find out what microphone he uses.
What I found was a whole ton of well known, long time broadcasters praising the merits of the PR-40. After doing some research I ordered mine and have been delighted.
The microphone is not cheap, I bought mine for around $330 just for the Mic, then I bought a stand for another $100 and the spider shock mount for another $100! So I could not dive right into this mic, the time had to be right for such an upgrade.
When we launched Jupiter Broadcasting it really felt like it was time to step up once more, and upgrade to something top of the line to reflect our ambitions for Jupiter Broadcasting, enter the Heil PR-40. The PR-40 is truly a modern achievement in amazing microphone design, it has amazing highs, mid’s and lows. Its top fire-end design means that background noise is cut way, way down.
The only major negative thing I have to say about this microphone is it has a major learning curve. The PR-40 requires a new technique to use it, no more sloppy positioning, and breathing. Once you get that down, and really only practice makes perfect, you have a super great microphone.
Like the others, I bought my Heil PR-40 from the store Amazon (only a few left in stock):
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Heil PR-40 Dynamic Studio Recording Microphone: Musical Instruments ASIN: B000BQXOEM |
Just in time for those of you that need a last minute gift idea for your upcoming holiday! Keep it geeky with a digital picture frame that can update pictures over the net!
You can watch the embedded review, or you can download the iPod compatible version or catch the amazing HD version, of course we also have an audio version below:
No OGG version for this episode… Our super amazing automated process to make OGG files broke. Will try for next episode though!
If you liked this video, be sure to check out our YouTube channel and subscribe to get everything as we release it!
As of this post I have upgraded the blog to WordPress 2.7, looking very sharp! Expect a video from us soon reviewing it. Bryan and I have lots more coming, tons of crazy great ideas planed for future videos!
Big thanks to the wordpress team, they did a great job, if you would like to see some of the great new features in WordPress 2.7, I really recommend this video:
Serval Professional Laptop
I recently had a chance to sit down with system76‘s Serval Professional laptop. For those who are not familiar with system76, they sell laptops, desktops and servers pre-loaded with Ubuntu Linux.
When they released their new Serval Professional laptop I knew I had to get my hands on it do a full review.
To start off with, the specs of the machine are fantastic, and it ships with Ubuntu 8.10 (64bit version on my machine) for $1,588 my review unit included:
Display: 15.4″ WSXGA+ (1680 x 1050)
CPU: 2.26 GHz Core 2 Duo P8400 1066 MHz FSB 3 MB L2 (25 Watt)
Memory: 4 GB – DDR3 1066 MHZ
Hard Drive: 250 GB 7200 RPM SATA II
Graphics: nVidia GeForce 9800M GTS with 512MB DDR3
Networking: Gigabit LAN, WiFi with 802.11 agn & Bluetooth
Expansion: Express Card 34/54 slot
Ports: DVI, HDMI, 3 x USB 2.0, eSata Port, FireWire, Headphone In, Microphone In, S/PDIF Output, SD Reader
Camera: Built-In Webcam
Security: Fingerprint Reader (beta),
Battery: 8 Cell Lithium Ion
Dimensions: 14.3″ x 10.6″ x 1.45~1.95″ (WxDxH)
Weight: 7.1 lbs.
Even a casual geek reads desktop replacement between the lines of those specs, and boy is it. The raw speed of this laptop is felt in all aspects, boot up, program launch, and shutdown are all fast fast fast.
Watch our video for the full review:
Some possible cons of this laptop:
Some real Pros of this laptop:
In Conclusion:
The Serval Professional laptop is an outstanding machine with fantastic Linux support out of the box. I’d say it lives up to the professional in it’s name. This machine would be ideal for any pro on the go that’s looking for the power of a desktop!
I’ve been a long time SuSE user, I enjoyed the old boxed sets with the big manuals and CD books full of software. With that view I have always looked forward to every release of the distribution.
openSUSE 11.1 features all of the great new improvements in the Gnome and KDE desktops, combined with many of their own direct innovations.
Having been a user of SuSE, now openSUSE as well as their enterprise offerings such as SUSE Linux Enterprise Server I’ve seen this distribution from a lot of different perspectives. The various releases always seems well integrated and have a lot of small touches that give it a polished feel. The enterprise version has key features that fit that role perfect, and the desktop always seems to nail it’s target. I recall when SuSE was the first Linux distribution to ship with the ability to boot off the installer CDs and perform a system recovery that could restore your boot loader or kernel, something that saved my bacon once or twice when I was still learning “the right way” to do things!
These days I’d say the gap between distribution features is starting close up, but did I find something that stood out about openSUSE? Watch the video and find out:
Major App Improvements: |
Firefox 3.0.3 OpenOffice.org 3.0 Gnome 2.24.1 KDE 4.1.3 + KDE 3.5.10 Mono 2.0.1 openJDK as replacement of Sun Java |
Desktop Environments |
KDE 3.5.10 KDE 4.1.3 GNOME 2.24.1 Xfce 4.4.3 3D desktop using Compiz Fusion |
Multimedia |
Banshee 1.4.0.1 AmaroK 1.4.10 & 2.0 kaffeine 0.8.7 PulseAudio 0.9.12 Audacity 1.3.5 flash-player 10 |
Mobility |
Networkmanager 0.7 3G and Bluetooth support External Monitor support Support for docking stations |
System Components |
Linux Kernel 2.6.27 GCC 4.3 glibc 2.9 X.Org 7.4 XEN 3.3.1 KVM 78 Virtual Box 2.0.4 |
In some ways openSUSE is a distribution (like others) caught in a transition world between KDE3 and KDE4. As the KDE user base makes it’s switch, the developers must spend a lot of energy in making both KDE3 and KDE 4 work well, on top of Gnome and XFCE. It’s difficult task I am sure, but I think in a year or so it will have paid off, as KDE4 seems to be steadily reaching a point where it will be useable for the everyone. Despite this nether desktop environment seems to lack polish, truly a job well done!
Great job to the openSUSE team, they’ve got a great release on their hands!
MXL 990 Condenser Microphone with Shockmount: Musical Instruments