Microsoft
Having recently acquired a Pocket PC phone with 3.5G internet, I find myself in need of a feed-reader. I use NetNewsWire on my Mac - and it is superb - and NewsGator to ensure that I need only read once across all my devices. However, NewsGator has two flaws: firstly, there is no Linux client, forcing you to use the somewhat rubbish web interface; and secondly, the Windows Mobile client is mediocre at best, not to mention pricey.
What to do? Well, write one of course. And the most tempting target would be .NET Compact Framework. It allows you to build for the PPC in a high-level language with a nice framework. Plus, it would be nice to learn some C#. But then I ran into a problem - Microsoft firmly believe that no one uses anything but Windows. Hence, all their development tools are only available for Windows.
Microsoft are daft on development tools - unlike the world of Java, where everyone and his dog offers an IDE and most are free and really rather good, Microsoft prefer to make life easy only if you buy Visual Studio. Great for corporates, for whom a MSDN subscription is a small investment. Bad for individuals, small companies and those who just want to learn. They have released a SDK for .NET Compact version 2.0, but you'll still be hunting elsewhere to find a nice environment.
But this is all beside the point for those with a Linux box or a Mac. Yes, there is Mono, although the most I could find about .NET Compact support was a comment about having to hack assemblies to get the .NET runtime to accept them. All in all, it would appear Microsoft doesn't want to make it easy to develop for their flagship mobile OS. Indeed, they seem positively desperate to ensure it stays chained to a Windows PC.
So, I've ended up falling back on J2ME. J2ME is maddening in some ways - it's very basic, it's very modular (and hence your never sure what device supports what version of what), has a very small standard library and lacks environmental integration on some platforms (such as, surprise, Pocket PC). The UI structures are extremely basic - I'm having to write my own tree control, for instance. But, on the other hand, the SDK was a 40Mb download, and I was up in running in IntelliJ in minutes. (Or, you can download NetBeans and the Mobility Pack for a free environment).
It's annoying in a way, as I've played with J2ME in the past and wanted to try something new. But at the end of the day I'd rather cut code then arse about with the basics.
Microsoft have just given the somewhat badly named WPF/E the shiny new label of 'Silverlight'. What's more, they've actually made it interesting.
WPF/E was a flash competitor built around XAML, Microsoft's XML format for UI specification. Interesting, yet not really adding much more than you can already get in Flash or Apollo. Along with the new nomenclature, they've now added an embedded version of the CLR, the VM behind .NET. What this means is you should get a lot more power, support for more languages and a lot more speed.
The downsides? Cross-platform means Windows, Mac OS X and Windows Mobile (you can download beta releases of the first two). There's no Linux support, no Symbian support, no Palm support - indeed, cross-platform is provided purely by Mac support. And development tools are Windows only. Also, those who remember Internet Explorer for the Mac, HP/UX and Solaris will remember Microsoft's old habit of professing interoperability until they've won the market, then dropping it. Only time will tell if they've left this behind for the good of all involved.
On the upside, certain parts have been released under BSD-style licences, so one can only hope that the good people of Mono will fill the gap. One can even dream and imagine Microsoft may fill it - although history does not offer much hope on this score.
One can't help but think back to the days of Netscape and Constellation - make the desktop obsolete in favour of the web. We know have the raw power and enough bandwidth to make this a reality for many users, so the technology used to do this is an extremely important area in which to make one's mark. Cue the reprise of the 'browser wars', Microsoft vs. Adobe this time. May you live in interesting times indeed...
Early last year the BBC and the other major free-to-air broadcasters started a trial of terrestrial HDTV broadcasts in south London. While the others have packed up, the BBC is still broadcasting in 1080i and has many of its headline programmes on there - such as Planet Earth - along with a lot of previews and fillers.
I've been keen to get it for a while, as Planet Earth in particular really benefits from the added resolution. However, it is encoded as MPEG-4/H.264, whereas the SDTV channels (and hence the majority of set-top boxes) are sent in MPEG-2. Further, neither EyeTV for the Mac or Windows Media Centre support HDTV in H.264, quite possibly because the US uses MPEG-2 for HD broadcasts. However, with a little hacking I've managed to get it, under Windows at least.
The solution:
H.264 codecs are a little tricky - while CoreAVC is widely recommended, the buggers won't let you buy it at present, effectively making it unavailable. Hence I've fallen back on the trial version of PowerDVD, which is apparently slightly slower but does work.
And so, we can now watch BBC HD. The resolution is superb - 1080i is above the size of most PC screens - and my MacBook Pro CoreDuo 2.0Ghz almost manages to keep up. Hopefully CoreAVC will add that last bit of speed, as it's almost there.
Oddly enough, though, I can't use my external digital receiver/speakers - the DVB stream stops dead when I plug them in. I'm blaming this on the BootCamp drivers at present, but it's odd.
Now, if only Microsoft and Elgato would pull finger...
Hurrah! There I was, watching as Elgato and Miglia fell out, when I stumbled across a link with BDA drivers for the TVMini for Windows. This is somewhat handy, given the version of Windows on my Mac is Media Centre Edition. This is even more handy given I had previous failed to get this working under Windows.
Hurrah for digital telly!
After all the kerfuffle about the BBC using Windows only DRM, the BBC has apparently explained. It's not much (basically: we couldn't find anything open that did what was needed) but it helps. After all, the Trust is demanding a cross-platform service within 24 months - and surely Mac & Linux users won't miss that much telly in that time?
Not that I'm really too worried, given they have committed to doing it. The BBC broadcasts in open 576i widescreen MPEG-2, and between my PVR (which lets me copy recorded content off over an USB cable) and my DVB-T USB adapter I can already access any current content I want. The archive is the main source of information, and I can survive a brief stint of having to reboot into Windows.
2006 is rapidly drawing to a close, and yet I find Microsoft and MarkSpace conspiring to make it difficult.
First up, the Vista upgrade redemption from the good people at Microsoft. For those who acquired an OEM copy of WinXP during the later stages of the year there is a free upgrade to Vista on offer. To do this, jump over to their web-site and enter the coupon details, and Bob is your proverbial uncle.
If only. Firstly, the site is terrible. My first try in November was met by a refusal of the site to acknowledge that Windows XP MCE existed. Today's try got a little further than that at least, but it was a painful journey. Every time you enter something the page reloads. Completely. Even for the obvious choices - such as selecting the only possible upgrade option, and then the quantity. And they use US dates, even when I've said I'm in the UK and my browser asks for UK English. Do I need to play Land of Hope and Glory as well?
Nor can you go back. God forbid that you make a mistake. This becomes particularly problematic around payment. Select your payment type - credit card or debit card. Easy. I've got a Visa card with DEBIT CARD printed in large capital letters across it. It's not easy to confuse it with a credit card. And yet, they only believe in Solo/Switch debit cards. Further, you can't go back. 'Cancel' I cry! They ask am I sure, for if I cancel the order then I'll have to contact customer support. 'Cancel payment' I click instead, and am helpfully returned to exactly the same page. Further, submission results in a generic failure and a 'please try again' message. However, trying again results in 'this coupon has already been used'. Could this all be an elaborate measure to ensure Vista's security by never shipping it? One wonders...
On the desktop side, MarkSpace and their Missing Sync for Windows Mobile product has been driving me mad. Not only did they release the WM5 version (v2.5) and then follow it but a few months later with v3, but it doesn't work. Can I get a USB connection to work with my HTC Wizard? Not a snowflake's chance in hell. Bluetooth is my only option, and even that is flakey as hell, usually resulting in a crash of the software after disconnection and bollocksing up network access on my machine. Nor, looking at the forums, do I appear to be the only one suffering. No wonder people are happy to pirate software willy nilly when when one pays one gets such rubbish.
But never mind. This evening we're off to Somerset House for New Year's, where we can watch the fireworks in the howling wind and avoid the exceptionally packed Embankment. Assuming, of course, it doesn't piss down. (Ironically enough, just as I wrote that line the rain started... figures).
One of the more ambitious projects ever to see a beta release - Wine - runs on the Mac. With caveats - it's a pain in the arse to get working.
- Remove Apple's X11 if you want any chance of using 3D.
- Get Fink and install x.org 6.8.2 and applex11tools.
- Install FreeType and FontForge by your favourite means (I suggest MacPorts).
- Download the Wine source - you could use the Darwine Mac OS X wrapper for Mac-ish goodness, but you'll need to hack the script to do the configure change below.
- Run configure for Wine using LDFLAGS='-framework CoreServices' ./configure --prefix=/usr/local (or where ever you so wish). The link to CoreServices is needed to stop one of the Font Tools failing.
- Configure should complete without warnings, otherwise panic.
- Run make depend && make && sudo make install
- Finally, run using DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/opt/local/lib wine <program> - if you installed FreeType elsewhere then substitute that location for /opt/local/lib. Even better, encapsulate this part in a script.
At this point you should have a Wine installation that runs Steam. Wasn't that simple?
One has to question if the online world is an exercise in homogeneity or individuality - is the consistent (and often unwisely unguarded) content of MySpace a quest for individual expression or the start of the rise of the hive mind, sentient internet, world domination and so on? New Scientist have chimed in this week with a sociologist voting on collectiveness - but without community. It's an interest take - a social network where the collective encourages expression over introspection, but nevertheless doesn't provide a group focus and intent. And it does make one wonder what the point of community is if the whole point of the community is to parade the individuals within.
Or maybe I've had too much tea and am talking bollocks...
In any case I can hardly talk. I've had a vanity site for years, well before they were called 'blogs'. My only saving grace comes from my introversion - I've no real interest in communities like MySpace as I've better ways of keeping in touch with those I know and no great interest in the deepest thoughts of those I don't. And on this line it's a great annoyance to me that MSN Messenger won't integrate with private or even third party sites, only Windows Live Spaces - I'd love to let my friends see new photos and the like but I'm not going to be moving services for the privilege. Not that this concept has ever troubled Microsoft...
My last employers were kind enough to give me a cheque upon leaving. This makes a nice change - normally there's guessing involved and it's all rather inconvenient. What's more, the company topped up the sum donated by my kind colleagues - an example more should follow. So, money to spend in London. Whatever to do?
What I ended up doing was what any self-respecting geek would do: I bought a new keyboard and mouse. My old keyboard was a Natural Keyboard Pro, one of the best of the group, but getting a touch noisy having just reached 6 and a half years of abuse. I had held off replacing it due to the industry's current avoidance of split keyboard - Logitech only produces the Cordless Comfort Desktop set (which Polly has) and Microsoft recently revamped their line with the appalling Comfort Curve - what's the point of that? Conveniently, they soon followed it up with the excellent Natural Keyboard 4000.
The 4000 has a couple of nice enhancements. Firstly, the keys are not just split but nicely curved for the hands. Secondly, it comes with a stand to raise the front, thus keeping your hands flat while typing. It looks a touch odd, but is very comfortable. Add the faux-leather wrist rest and the dirt-hiding black colour and it's well worth the £35 odd quid from PC World (cheaper than Amazon even). Even Polly is impressed with it.
I also invested in a new mouse. My Renaissance mouse was snapped during the flight to Heathrow and was thus working due only to the tape covering the break. I did consider a G7 (wireless, but batteries need to be changed every day or two) and the G5 (laser with silly weighting system) but in the end went for last-generations corded spectacular - the MX518. Changeable DPI, buttons galore and a stylish cover - what more could one want? The only catch is it suffers from Logitech's current fad of only shipping Windows drivers, hence I'll need USB Overdrive to change the rest.
Even better, to polish the day off, England's football game meant that even with 'Severe Delays' the Misery Line was half empty and reasonably quick. Made a change from being unable to stand up this morning, anyway. So, for the first time in my life, I say let there be more football! (or more tube trains...)
Microsoft have released the public beta of WIndows Vista, the much delayed successor to XP. As such, being mad, I downloaded and installed it. Of course I didn't want to break my games machine, so I installed in over the XP installation on my MacBook Pro. Luckily my important data wasn't summarily wiped, so I now have a working dual-boot system with Vista.
Installation is a bit odd and documented on a Microsoft blog... you have to delete a mystery partition and do a repair after the first reboot to fix the MBR. Then Windows Update will find the WiFi drivers, the XP sound drivers work and your guess is as good as mine as to what the remaining unknown devices represent.
It does look a lot better than I had expected. It does go over the top in eye-candy, favouring looks over usability. For instance, the transparent window backgrounds are sometimes distractingly transparent. And the window fade in animation is neat at first, but fast becomes annoying. It's fast and very smooth for a beta, but then I do have a Core Duo and a 256Mb X1600. But first impressions are that it will certainly make Windows a much more pleasant place to be. And the new mine-sweeper is very nice.
Other annoyances, from the 15 minutes I've spent playing post-setup:
- It's still very US centric. Despite selected the UK settings on the first setup dialogue, each later step assumed I was in the US. Come on, give us some sensible defaults!
- The loading screen has no text, just a progress bar.
- First startup I suffered a black screen for 3 minutes, a reboot then another black screen, followed by a desktop. Subsequently there have been no repeats of this, so I presume they just left the progress bar out...?
- The currency widget does not make it easy to change currencies.
Of course one wonders if Mac OS X Leopard will steal its thunder come August...
