The US based 'Center for Social Media' has just released guidelines that will be of interest to anyone in the online media and video mashups world about what exactly is 'fair use' under copyright law. The WorldTV Site Blog has more.

In other news, the doomsday scenarios of the Internet running out of capacity due to online video are (in this writers opinion) overblown, and some 'counter' news on the subject is probably overdue. This article talks about the plans to lay many more undersea cables in the next couple of years.

Posted by Alx Klive at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In a previous article I showed how to very easily fix an overheating Dell laptop. From the comments I've received it seems to have helped a lot of people, so when my wife's Acer laptop started acting in a strange way, rebooting for no reason, loud fan noises, severe burning of the legs - I sensed it might be an overheating problem, and a new Layman's Guide beckoned...

If you have a laptop (or any computer for that matter) that is constantly restarting or rebooting for no apparent reason, the reason may well be overheating. If your computer is constantly rebooting and there are other tell-tale signs... such as the fan coming on more often than you remember and sounding louder, very hot air coming out of the side vent, you almost certainly have an overheating problem.

Continue reading "Fixing an Overheating Laptop - A Layman's Guide" »

Posted by Alx Klive at 10:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

CamTwist is very clever free software for the Mac that lets you switch between different video sources on your computer, including webcams, movie files and also your computer's desktop. You can add a range of video effects, titles and other useful overlays, in multiple layers - such as news tickers (powered by RSS), logos and graphics, and then output the result as... another video source on your computer.

What this means is that you can use this program to intercept the video going into other programs that lets you choose a video source - think video editing programs, video chat programs (eg Skype) and flash-based online video services such as Ustream, JustinTV, Stickam and WorldTV.

Another way of looking at it is that the program lets you create your own software-based live video mixing studio that sits well with almost all other video programs, including streaming web video services.

You can take the video from your webcam, pimp it up broadcast style, and then send it onwards to a video chat session, recording or online video streaming session. Amaze your friends in Skype, do highly professional stuff online - possibly you'll do both.

The intercept approach is genius because of its flexibility, and it explains why leading web broadcasters like Chris Pirillo and Rhett & Link are using the software, made by an enthusiast, and supported through generosity of donations.

CamTwist is highly powerful (see demo video below), and you only have to see the results of that on the two sites I've just mentioned - both Chris Pirillo and Rhett & Link use the software for all of their live video mixing and compositing.

While CamTwist excels is in its depth and flexibility, it suffers a little in ease-of-use at this time. This should not put you off as it is well worth the investment, and the interface will improve as the software develops. It's still early days.

You can learn the interface in about 30 mins and once you've got the hang of it you'll quickly come to appreciate the power that it provides you, and most probably love the developer who made it. In short it is highly empowering software that has nothing else like it.

If you want a little more convincing before making the leap, I highly recommend reading Michael Pick's excellent coverage of the software.

Introductory Guide to CamTwist

There are two distinct parts to the application - the older legacy part of the application - the main window, which lets you set up sources and effects, which effectively become buttons for the main Studio window where you do the live switching. Basically you do all your experimenting and configuring in the first window, and the live switching in the second.

I recommend reading and watching the two Quick Start video guides on the site wiki - the first is for the main (legacy) window of the application, and the second is for the new Studio window. It's important to understand that the main, older window represents where the project is coming from, and the Studio window where it is going. Any quirks of use can be understood much better if you keep this in mind.

Another important point is that the program does not control or switch audio. The audio circuits of a Mac are separate from the video and this can actually provide you with much greater control. It's not yet been a problem for me, but I may revisit this subject later if it becomes so.

For an alternative viewpoint of how it can be used, Chris Pirillo's fascinating explanation of how he produces his online TV show is well worth a look.

This article is a stub - I intend to add to it over time.

Posted by Alx Klive at 09:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you are trying to install Qik software (or any other software for that matter) on your Nokia mobile phone and are getting "Certificate error - contact application provider", there's an easy fix. Here's how to do it...

Go to Tools -> Settings -> Applications -> App Manager

Change the setting for Software Installation from 'Signed only' to 'All'. This should do the trick, but you can also change the setting for Online Certificate Check to 'Off' as an added measure. If you are looking for a great tool for Qik videos, be sure to check out WorldTV's integration with Qik which is very cool.

I have tested this on both the Nokia N95 and Nokia E51 and it works great. The Nokia E51 (with camera) is a good more economical substitute for the N95 incidentally if you want to use Qik's service.

Posted by Alx Klive at 04:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For too long, RSS was scary and inaccessible to most people. Even if you did get as far as knowing what it was, you would almost inevitably spend ages downloading, installing and trying any number of different RSS programs, until you finally found one that you liked. You might then spend ages configuring it, only to ultimately be left disappointed.

Not any more...

For the first time, I am happily recommending to non-techy friends that they give RSS a try, and all because of Google Reader, an increasingly popular RSS program that finally makes RSS fun and friendly for all.

What is RSS?

Webpages like this one are designed to be read by people - you and me. Some bright spark a while back decided that webpages should also be readable by computers. That's how RSS came into being - RSS is a 'machine readable' version of a website.

In practical terms, this means you can use a computer program to bring this website or almost any website to you. You might ask... isn't that what I'm doing already?!

Kinda.

At the moment, if you want to see if there is anything new on your favourite website, you visit it in your web browser - Firefox or Internet Explorer.

Let's say you are a fan of Perez Hilton's celebrity news blog, you might visit it once or twice a day to see the latest stories. You visit it pro-actively.

With RSS (and I will use Google Reader as the example) you can "add Perez Hilton to your Google Reader", and all the new Perez Hilton stories will appear in your Google Reader instead. If you regularly visit more than one website, this can be a real time saver.

Why do I care?

Some cool features mean you can quickly scan lots of stories from lots of different websites in Google Reader and only delve into those that interest you. The coolest feature of all is that the stories you've already read automatically disappear from your 'In Box'. A word of caution... Reading websites in this way can get addictive! Try it out and you'll understand what I mean.

Not all websites lend themselves to RSS though, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. An RSS feed for a casual game website would not make much sense. What new information is being posted?

Typically RSS is best suited to news style websites or blogs where new information regularly appears. Indeed, some very active sites may have more than one RSS feed - A big news site like BBC or CNN has feeds specific to different categories of news. USEFUL TIP - If you find you are getting too many articles coming from a particular site in Google Reader, it's worth exploring if a more 'narrow' feed is available from that site.

Searching for feeds to add can be done in a couple of ways. You can search right from within Google Reader itself if you know the name of a specific site you like, or you can keep an eye open for the ubiquitous orange RSS icon (pictured above) as you browse different sites.

If you spot this icon on a site you like, you can usually click it to begin a process to add the site to your Google Reader. To make this even easier, Google offers a free special bookmarklet thingy which I happen to use and like.

The best way to think about RSS is that "websites come to you".

Some tips for use...

• You can filter through new stories very quickly, similar to e-mail. A clever bit of programming pixie dust ensures that as you scan past a story using your scroll bar, you won't see it again.

• Some sites restrict the amount of information that they make available by RSS. So if you only see a headline and short description for a story, you will have to click the link in Google Reader to read the rest of the story. Again, this is not necessarily a bad thing.

• The 'Star' feature in Google Reader is like a bookmark, you can bookmark stories that you like and revisit them at any time. You can also search your 'starred items' to retrieve stories you've bookmarked in the past. This feature is very useful indeed.

• The 'Share' feature is also cool. Basically it automatically creates a webpage (you can give the URL to friends), and they can see all your 'shared' stories. Super Geek feature! Cleverly, your shared items get their own RSS feed for broadcast.
  

That's enough to get you started. In a second part to this article I will write more about ways the 'Shared RSS' feed can be used and the implications and opportunities it has for future social news networks.

If you don't want to miss this awesome second part to the article, you might want to subscribe to my RSS feed... :-)

Posted by Alx Klive at 02:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The UDRP (or Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy) is a little known piece of 'law' that every domain name holder (and prospective domain name holder) should know about. Not knowing about it could have serious consequences if a trademark owner challenges your domain name. This is more common than you think.

Basically, the UDRP is a mechanism whereby trademark owners can claim back domain names from people who have deliberately or unwittingly registered a domain name containing a trademark. The process is frighteningly fast, decisive, and most people don't have the faintest idea of its existence.

The UDRP is not strictly speaking law, but nonetheless it legally governs all domain name registrations, as you specifically agree to be bound by it when you buy a domain name from any legitimate domain name registrar (eg GoDaddy, RegisterFly, Moniker etc). Your agreement to be bound by the UDRP is typically buried away in one of those terms and conditions pages that you check off without thinking when you go to register a domain.

Our company has just been embroiled in a complex UDRP action and the experience is a warning and lesson to anyone involved in registering domain names.

It turns out that if you register a domain name that contains as part of the domain name a trademarked word, the trademark owner has virtually defacto rights to take back the domain name from you using the UDRP, no matter how much work you have put into building your website, and no matter how successful or popular the site has become.

It costs only $1300 to file a UDRP action by a trademark owner, regardless of the number of domain names at issue, and UDRP decisions are overwhelmingly weighed in favour of the trademark owners. The vast majority of cases are won by the trademark owner, and indeed many people are so overwhelmed when they receive notification of an action, that they don't even bother to defend themselves, which is almost always a mistake.

I won't go into chapter and verse on the mechanics of the UDRP, but basically it works as follows...

1. A trademark owner discovers that someone has registered a domain name that contains, or is very similar to, a trademark that they own - eg wefixdell.com, or gooogle.com or hampsteadflowers.com. (Trademarks cover much more than just well known international companies)
2. The trademark owner files a complaint with one of the four independent UDRP mediation organisations, two of which are most common - WIPO and the National Arbitration Forum. They pay $1500 in the case of WIPO and $1300 in the case of NAF to initiate and prosecute the action.
3. The domain name holder gets an e-mail telling them that a UDRP action has been filed against them, and they have 20 days to file a response. The domain name is instantly locked at this stage by your registrar so you can't do anything with it. It is typically locked before you are even notified of the action. (Note that this does not mean your site is not accessible, although in some very extreme cases this can happen if you are unlucky)
4. Your response doesn't have to be filed by a lawyer, the UDRP is designed to be accessible to people who wish to defend themselves. In this way it is similar to a small claims court proceeding.
5. After the 20 days are up, both parties have the option to file an additional shorter response within 5 days. Once this time is up, a mediator (usually an experienced lawyer) makes a decision.

The mediator's decision is final, and is typically given within 21 days. If the decision is to hand over the domain name to the trademark owner (which is usually the case), the trademark owner can get your domain name and all its traffic less than 2 weeks later, although the average is around 3-4 weeks. There is nothing you can do to stop the process, all the domain name registrars are parties to this and will make the transfer automatically whether you agree with it or not. The only option you have at your disposal if you lose a UDRP action is to launch your own separate legal action in a proper court of law immediately after the decision, but this option will usually only be available to those with deep pockets and resources.

For an eye opening read into the kind of cases that are dealt with by the UDRP, you can search through all the past cases at both the WIPO and NAF websites - Personally I find the NAF database to be the friendliest to use. You don't actually need to enter any words or phrases into the search box, just hit 'Search Cases' and you'll get all the cases that have ever gone to UDRP at the National Arbitration Forum.

What will surprise you is how many cases there are involving trademarks and companies you've never heard of. This is the worrying part for people considering registering a domain name, or holding a large collection of existing names.

I'm sure you'll find your own interesting cases but this one and this one are pretty good. The latter is a particularly good example of how a trademark owner can claim back hundreds of domain names in a single action.

My advice to anyone involved (even casually) in registering domain names is the following...

• Check the free online US trademark database and the trademark database in your own country before registering a domain name
• Never offer to sell a domain name containing a trademark to the trademark owner (this makes it a slam dunk that the other party will win a UDRP action against you)
• Never allow yourself to get drawn in to offering a domain name to a trademark owner if they approach you to buy the name. Someone tried this on us recently.
• Do not register domain names containing trademarks except in extreme circumstances. The only viable reasons for using such a domain would be if you can show that you run an existing business with the same name, or if your site is strictly not-for-profit, or if you have had the domain name since before the trademark was filed. Some fan sites are occasionally allowed (but this is 50/50), and some free speech sites such as xyzcompanysucks.com are occasionally allowed (again it's 50/50 here).

If you do get hit with a UDRP action, and you believe you have acted in good faith (i.e. you are not in business as a cybersquatter), the thing to do is to make sure you DO file a response, even if it's your own words and you don't wish to or can't afford to hire a lawyer.

Here are some tips on preparing your own response to a UDRP action...

• Read the UDRP policy at least 3 times. It's not that long. Make sure you understand it, or get a friend who's smarter than you to help you.
• Read the UDRP Rules document
• Read the Supplemental Rules document for the particular mediation organization that is being used in your case. For example the WIPO Supplemental Rules and the NAF Supplemental Rules govern the procedural side of things - when you have to file a response by, how to do so, and so on
• Read as many past cases as you can (we read over 50) and try to find cases that are similar to yours
• Read this excellent but rather lengthy analysis of past UDRP decisions
• Begin writing your response paying particular attention to the 3 key areas listed in the UDRP policy
• Back up every single thing that you say with proof. You only have 10 pages to file your response, but you can have as many pages as you like of 'exhibits' (screenshots, printouts etc). In our case, we filed 90 pages of exhibits in our response, although this is probably extreme
• Use tools such as the Wayback machine to show what your site looked like in the past or tools such as Compete.com and Alexa to demonstrate the number of users you have
• Research the 'Complainant' (the person filing the action) thoroughly, their trademarks, their business, their domain names, and look for any areas you can seize upon. Research any prior UDRP cases they might have filed.
• Read the Complainant's initial Complaint document over and over again. Understand the lingo, find mistakes, inaccuracies, and look for how they structure their Complaint. A common feature is for them to quote previous decisions. You should do the same.
• The National Arbitration Forum provides a model Response form in Word format which you can use to structure your response. You should use it.
• Focus on the 3 main categories of defence as provided by the UDRP, and always be thinking of how your arguments relate to these 3 particular categories
• Make use of the option to file an additional response. It doesn't cost you anything other than your time, and it means you get to have the last word.
• Finally, don't leave your response to the last minute. Start work on your response immediately you receive notification of an action. It will take you 20 days to research, learn everything about the UDRP and to prepare a full and detailed response.

If you do all this, you stand a far better chance of holding on to your domain name and website.

In our case, we defended ourselves without lawyers as a matter of principle, and I'm delighted to say we won our UDRP decision. It was around 100 hours of work, but worth it.

Good luck in your case, and if you have any comments or have found this article useful, please share them with other readers through the comments feature below.

Posted by Alx Klive at 01:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's a cool site which should appeal to lovers of user interfaces and technology nuts.

Fast Digg lets you scan the latest technology stories from popular site Digg.com, using only a keyboard for control, no mouse required. It's great if you fancy leaning back a little to take in a world of news - simply use the cursor keys to control, and an occasional CTRL-W.

It works best in Firefox for the PC and Safari for the Mac. Unfortunately Internet Explorer is hopeless as usual.

Fast Digg

Posted by Alx Klive at 10:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We love the Dell Inspiron 1300 laptops here in our office - we have 3 of them.

Until recently they were Dell's lowest end laptop, and as I always preach - buy the cheapest laptop you can. They only last a year or two at most, and even the lowest end machines these days are more than powerful enough for what most people need.

Lately the oldest of our 3 laptops has been overheating. Having scalded my partners legs one too many times, it was finally clear that something was seriously wrong with his machine. This was confirmed with a M1004 error code (a Dell overheating code) that tells you to call their service centre.

Continue reading "Fixing an overheating Inspiron 1300 laptop" »

Posted by Alx Klive at 01:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (31)

One of the problems as a webmaster turned web publisher comes when you start needing other people to access and work on your site.

If you have traditionally kept all your files on your own machine, happily FTP'ing them up to your own web server, you have a problem to overcome. It's partly technical but can be psychological too.

How do you move to a group web development process?

It's ok if you are all in the same location, you can setup a network and take it in turns to work on the files. The reality of many web publishers these days however is being constantly 'on the move', and working with developers in different countries.

Continue reading "Managing group web development with Subversion and Eclipse" »

Posted by Alx Klive at 01:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So I finally made the plunge and picked up a Blackberry yesterday on my way through Heathrow airport.

I've resisted getting a Blackberry for ages simply because I couldn't see how I would ever integrate it with my tried and tested (12 years old!) Eudora POP based e-mail system. If I send e-mails from my Blackberry for instance, how can I have a copy in my Eudora Out box?

That problem is for another post, but for now I'm interested in the process of getting contacts off my old phone and into my shiny new Blackberry Pearl.

Continue reading "Syncing a Blackberry Pearl with the Mac Address Book" »

Posted by Alx Klive at 08:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

If like me you have spent hours trying to find a simple and free FLV file converter, then you've probably pulled out most of your hair already.

The Internet is littered with products that claim to convert FLV files for free, but invariably come with nasty surprises attached, or insist you pay up for something that you probably feel you shouldn't. Why can't there be a simple free FLV converter?

Well there is, and I'm going to show you how to use it. You'll also learn some neat stuff along the way...

Continue reading "FLV Converter - A Layman's Guide to Flash Video Conversion" »

Posted by Alx Klive at 01:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (140)

If like me you are a fan of the Dave Letterman show, you may be interested to learn that getting tickets to watch the show is not all that difficult.

Next time you're in New York, head down to the Ed Sullivan theatre (it's on Broadway at 53rd Street, just north of Times Square), and fill out an application form in the lobby for tickets. You'll need a phone number where the producers can get a hold of you, which can be a hotel, and you'll need some photo id. The producers say it is a lottery, and your chances of getting in are about 50-50. Personally I feel they say that so they can vet you on the spot, kind of like how bouncers say 'it's a private party tonight' if they don't like the look of you, but in any event those are pretty good odds.

Be prepared to answer the question 'do you watch the show?', and try to head down there on your very first day in the city. I went there on a Saturday morning and was able to get a ticket for the Monday afternoon taping.

It's well worth it. Dave Letterman is a genius, and totally unique in television. Seeing him in person only reinforced my view.

Posted by Alx Klive at 01:30 PM | Permalink

Two websites, Movielink and CinemaNow, have begun selling major Hollywood DVD releases online as Windows Media Player downloads. In the past, both companies only had a limited selection of mainly independent films, b-movies, and documentaries.

The problem for users outside the US is that both services are restricted to US residents only. Until that situation changes, and Hollywood finally wakes up to the idea that they should release movies simultaneously worldwide, the rest of the world is out of luck.

Or are they?

Both sites use basic 'geolocation' technology for determining if you are trying to access from outside the USA. They also rely on you using a US credit card for payment.

While I was not able to work around the credit card problem with Movielink, I was able to with CinemaNow, and in both cases I was able to work around the geolocation problem.

Here's how I did it...

Step 1 - Changing your location using a proxy server

When you access a website, your computer transmits a number called an IP address. This IP address is unique to your computer or home network, and is given to you by your Internet Service Provider. You can think of it as a kind of 'serial number' for your computer.

All Internet Service Providers have themselves been given a list of IP addresses to give out to their customers. So whether you are with BT in England, or Tiscali in Italy, or Telstra in Australia, all these companies have long lists of IP addresses which are assigned to them, which they then give to you.

Information about which Internet Service Provider owns which IP addresses is public knowledge. So if you access a website using a Telstra IP address, it's easy for that website to figure out you are accessing from Australia.

While it is not possible to change your IP address (easily), it is possible to pretend you are using a different IP address. You do this using something called a proxy server.

A proxy server is basically a relay through which you can pass information. The basic idea is that you find a proxy server located in the country where you want to 'appear' to be coming from (in this case the US), and access the website. The website will then think you are accessing from the USA.

Using a proxy server is not in itself illegal, and both free and commercial (paid) proxy services are available.

Free proxy lists can be found very easily online, but your mileage with these may vary. Often, free proxy servers can be unreliable, slow, or both. In my case I used a commercial service called The Proxy Connection which costs $24.99 per month. Other services exist.

There are two key bits of information you will need to note down from whichever service you use - the IP address of the proxy server itself (N.B. not your own IP address), and the port number. If you are using a commercial service, you may also need a username and password, which will be provided to you.

Armed with this information you then enter these proxy settings into your computer. A decent illustrated guide for doing this can be found on this University website.

If everything is working correctly, you should be able to access Movielink or CinemaNow through the proxy server, and see the version of the website that they have for US users. (I suggest trying Movielink first, since they provide a very clear notice if they think you are accessing from outside the USA).

I would recommend as well if you are having problems, that you try deleting any cookies for Movielink or CinemaNow, between each attempt. Here is a guide for deleting cookies.

All being well, you should now be able to see the US version of the site, and can move on to step 2.

Step 2 - Billing issues
The second major roadblock is that these sites require you to have a credit card with a US billing address. Unless you know someone in the US willing to let you use theirs, you've got a problem.

I can confirm however that I was able to purchase two movies on CinemaNow using a Canadian credit card and a UK credit card, respectively. I simply entered my normal address details, but used an American State and Zip code for those portions of the address. (California 90210 if you're wondering).

It appears this is because CinemaNow does not do extended checks when authorizing a credit card. Simply put, they do not check the Zip code and State information against the bank's database. (This is actually not that unusual, many websites do the same).

Conclusions & Tips
With a bit of creativity, it is possible to purchase the latest Hollywood DVD releases online, no matter where in the world you are. CinemaNow is the easier of the two sites to achieve this, and is in fact a better service generally. The prices are cheaper, and they provide user ratings and reviews of movies which Movielink does not.

The same principles in this article can be used for other sites that restrict access based on geography. Just remember to remove or disable your proxy settings after you get what you need. If not, you will find your Internet connection slower than normal, and you may get repeated pop up messages as different applications on your computer attempt to access the Internet.

If you have any tips or thoughts on this which you feel I've left out, please use the comments feature below. In this way everyone can share the knowledge.

Happy viewing!

Posted by Alx Klive at 10:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It can be very confusing for someone when first looking for video content on the Internet. A variety of confusing terms, lack of decent information, dubious legalities, the threat of viruses, and a healthy dose of snake-oil salesmen, all add up to an unpleasant and potentially soul destroying experience. In this guide I will try to help you avoid the bad, while steering you towards the good.

There are two distinct flavours of Internet TV. The first is video that you can view on your computer, either live or pre-recorded, and the second is video delivered over your Internet connection to your regular television, using a modified set-top box. This second option, known as IPTV, is a new technology, and has more in common with traditional cable or satellite TV service than online video. This article is concerned primarily with online video.

If you are like myself, you are probably interested in seeking out good quality video content that is available on the Internet. The question is, where do you start?

Live TV stations broadcasting on the Net
There are a limited number of television stations that are broadcasting their signals over the Internet. This is in stark contrast to the number of radio stations doing the same thing. The main reason for this is that TV stations tend to buy in a lot of their content, with tight restrictions on where it can be shown geographically. Stations that produce all their own content such as community stations, public broadcasters, and those covering niche subjects or news, are far more likely to webcast their signal. While there are a few notable exceptions, for the most part this means that the choices available are pretty dire. It doesn't help that there are few decent subjective resources for finding these stations, something we plan to address at WorldTV in future. For the time-being I would recommend the venerable wwitv.com as a starting point.

Live TV stations broadcasting on the Net (Illegal)
Where there is demand that is not being met by legal means, illegal sources to meet that demand will always proliferate. In the case of television, there is a huge demand to watch television from other countries, and quite frankly it's insane that in this day and age you can't. So where there's a will there's a way, and where there's neccessity there's invention. Say hello to P2P-TV.

P2PTV is the concept of peer-to-peer taken to its next logical step - streaming video. There's a handful of P2PTV software programs available, most coming out of China. What these programs do is relay TV stations illegally to other users over the Internet.

These products are generally advertised through websites such as TV.org, unlimitedtvshows.com, tvadvanced.com, freetvshowsonline.com, football-4-free.com, and so on. DO NOT GIVE THESE WEBSITES ANY OF YOUR MONEY. All you are buying is links to free software that you can find yourself through Google. Some also make the dubious claim of offering 'support' in return for your $£€. One good site which I do recommend, and which is free, is football4less.com. Although it is focussed on soccer, it has a good guide on the different P2PTV software programs, as well as download links.

A few notes of caution. Most of these programs are written in Chinese, and while a few have English translations, the translations are pretty diabolical. The TV stations that are available are also generally Chinese, or Italian, and navigating your way through the channel listings can be an exercise in frustration. Very often channels will not work, and this is especially the case when trying to access during peak demand such as during a popular sporting event, the main reason you'd probably want to use one of these programs. Unless you are very desparate, or speak Chinese, I do not recommend you install these programs. They do appear however to be pretty safe i.e. no viruses.

The programs are illegal because they involve the public rebroadcasting of copyrighted television signals. By installing the program you are technically aiding and abetting in this, although it's unclear whether Chinese copyright laws extend to the TV stations in question. In any event, P2PTV is well off the 'radar' for now, although that would certainly change if a popular English language P2PTV program was released, surely just a matter of time. I suggest for now though that you give these programs a wide berth, if only for the other reasons stated earlier.

Downloadable movies and TV shows (Legal)
This is perhaps the most active area in terms of new development. From Apple selling TV shows for its video iPod, to AOL offering free back catalogue TV shows, every week it seems there is a major new initiative or announcement. But things in this area are just getting started, so for now the choices are slim. I'll be covering every new announcement as it happens on these very pages, so be sure to come back regularly, or subscribe to the RSS feed.

If you can't wait until then, and are itching to find some content, I'd recomend CinemaNow.com, or if you live in the US its competitor MovieLink.com. Another site with less attractive content (albeit some of it free) is MovieFlix.com.

Beyond that, you will need to visit individual broadcaster's sites to see what they have available. Usually it's not very much. Do let me know if there are sites that you particularly like.

Downloadable movies and TV shows (Illegal)
This is a risky area, much more so than P2PTV. Traditional P2P file sharing software such as eDonkey, Gnutella and Limewire allow you to find all sorts of video content, most of which is illegal. The threat of downloading viruses is high, and the threat of receiving a nasty fine from the MPAA or similar body is quite real - although you would have to be very unlucky.

If you must explore the file sharing networks, DO NOT follow ads on Google that purport to offer TV download software, and be wary of any software that you have to pay for, unless it is an ad-free or deluxe version of a popular file sharing program like Morpheus Ultra. Instead, do your research on software review sites like download.com, and follow the reviews, advice and links from fellow users. If you are on a PC, be sure to install anti-virus software, I would recommend F-Secure. Another tip is to only download files that are an appropriately large size for the content they are supposed to be. A video clip, even a fairly short one, is rarely smaller than 10MB. If it's smaller than that, it's probably a virus.

The most recent development in this area is services based on the BitTorrent protocol. BitTorrent is not for the fainthearted and some technical expertise is needed. A comprehensive place to start is Wikipedia's BitTorrent page.

Internet born video and experimental services
So far I have discussed ways of finding traditional video content produced by the major media companies. Beyond this, there is a vast amount of non-traditional video content created exclusively for the Internet. This includes professional productions such as web-only dramas and behind the scenes documentaries, semi-professional content from aspiring producers and upstart Internet broadcasters, and non-professional content from people's mobile phones, video blogs or 'Aunt Gemma's 80th birthday party'.

Where to start? Well for professional quality stuff, look no further than Atom Films or the very excellent iFilm. For video blogging check out Vlogdir or Vidblogs, and finally for a bit of everything try Google Video, Vimeo or YouTube.

If that isn't enough for you, be sure to come back regularly for all the latest developments in online video as well as reviews and recommendations.

Posted by Alx Klive at 09:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There are a variety of different terms you may come across in relation to online video.

Streaming Video - Any video that does not require you to download a video file before viewing it. The video is delivered to you 'live', similar to a live television broadcast, and the video is not stored permanently on your computer.

File-based video - Video where you download a file first, then watch it. The file stays on your computer, unless you delete it. Video files are generally quite large in size, much larger than music files or word documents for instance. This is why they typically take longer to download.

Windows Media Player, Real Player, Quicktime - The 3 most popular types of 'player software' for watching video on your computer. You will need at least one of these programs to be able to watch video on your computer, some people install all 3. Luckily they are free to download, and in most cases at least one of them will already be installed on your system. While the lines between the 3 are blurring in terms of compatibility with each other, when it comes to streaming video (as opposed to file-based video), the three systems are essentially incompatible. If a live Internet broadcast is only available in Windows Media format, you will need to have Windows Media Player installed. Same for Quicktime, same for Real Player.

Real Player has gradually become a 'non' player due to its increasingly bloated software, upsell demands, and annoying interface, although it was the first to introduce the concept of streaming in 1995. Some people these days prefer a new community-built player called VLC, that aims to be compatible with all formats, except Real that is. I don't recommend it for average users, far easier to stick with the branded players. Avoid installing Real Player unless you absolutely have to. It's just too bloated. An alternative for PC users is a program called appropriately Real Alternative.

Compression - A system whereby information such as a video file can be compressed into a smaller file, usually with a slight loss in quality. The idea is that the smaller file will be quicker to download. Photo files that have a .jpg extension are an example of a file that has been compressed. MP3 audio files are another example.

DIVX - A type of compression system that has became particularly popular among people who illegally copy DVD's, and then make them available as 'DIVX files' for downloading on the Internet. Note that the common media players will not play DIVX files without installing the separate DIVX software. In technical terms you are installing a DIVX codec, that enables your media player to decompress (and thus play) the DIVX file.

Peer to Peer (P2P) - A concept whereby large files such as video can be exchanged among users in a decentralized fashion. You are downloading a file from someone else's computer, and people are downloading files from your computer. There is no central repositry of files. Think of it like a library where everyone has copies of the books, and you exchange books directly with other users.

The first program of this kind was Napster, more recent examples are Kazaa, Limewire and Morpheus. These programs are generally used to distribute illegal files, and the companies behind them frequently get shut down. For this reason, and because these systems are frequently used for distributing viruses, P2P has gotten a bad name, although it offers many advantages to traditional means of electronic distriibution.

Note that these days many P2P programs can access the files of other P2P software.

Bittorrent - A newer type of Peer-to-Peer software, somewhat more complicated to understand and use. It is an open source system meaning there are many different people providing alternative pieces of software for accessing it. As such, no single person or company can be identified to shut it down, and there are many completely legal users of the system. For this reason it is likely to be around for a while, and gradually (inexorably) it is getting easier to use.

Torrent - A small file that points to a larger file in the Bittorrent system. Typically you would click a link on a website to a torrent file, which then tells your Bittorrent software to go grab the much larger file you want.

eDonkey (also called ed2k) - Yet another peer-to-peer system, particularly popular for distributing video files. Easier to use than bittorrent, but now the company behind it has washed its hands of it. Enthusiasts and its large base of users keep it going.

DRM - Digital Rights Management. Any system that controls who can open a file, or how it is used. Primarily used for restricting access to paid content.

IPTV - Internet Protocol Television. Systems for delivering television over broadband connections in a similar way to cable or satellite. This generally refers to a closed system, where a set-top box plugs into your broadband connection, and provides a video signal for viewing on your normal television.

VOD - Video on Demand. A catch-all phrase for any system that allows you to view video when you want. Can be offered via IPTV, cable TV and Internet TV.

RSS - A system allowing you to be notified when content on a particular website changes.

P2PTV - Peer to Peer Television. This is the same idea as P2P file sharing, only instead of a group of people sharing files, they are sharing live television streams. A number of programs for doing this exist, with most of them coming out of China, due to the demand among ex-pat Chinese to see television from their home country.

The programs rely on a few people on the network connecting their computers to their TV signal, although often the makers of the software themselves provide this service. These programs are typically illegal, since the P2P nature of the programs mean that the television signals are being rebroadcast publicly to many users. This is not allowed under the terms and conditions of the vast majority of television broadcasters, and copyright laws in general.

I will update these definitions over time, so feel free to link to or bookmark this page.

Posted by Alx Klive at 09:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)