Ask MetaFilter questions in the technology category

Blu-Ray Makes My Mac Mini Turn Green With Envy

willmize — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:05:08 -0800

How can I get my Mac Mini and my new Blu-Ray player to play nice while they both share my big screen HDTV? I've been using my Visio VW46L as a monitor for my Mac Mini. I plug the DVI to HDMI cord into HDMI port #1 and everything has been well. The whole internet just looks better when it's 46" big.
Until now.

I purchased a Phillips BDP-5010 Blu-Ray Player.
Plugged it into a second HDMI port on my TV.
Looks fabulous!
Until I hit the input button and go back to the HDMI input that I use for my Mac Mini.
Everything that should be blue is GREEN.
Now nothing looks fabulous.

If I unplug the Blu-Ray player HDMI, unplug the TV and then plug it in and turn it back on (what I figure is the equivalent of rebooting a television), the Mac Mini's colors are back to normal and spiffy.

Do I have what I might loosely term a HDMI conflict?
Is the TV incapable of multiple 'profiles"?
Are the settings or whatever for my Blu-Ray 'leaking' over to my Mac Mini?

Needless to say, it's going to be a big PITA to have to go through all this plugging and unplugging and turning off nonsense when I want to check email without everything looking a sickening shade of green.

Any ideas on what's causing this color shift and how I can get my toys to play well with each other?

As always, thanks for all your help, I truly appreciate it.

How do I find someone to buy/license my patent for silent velcro?

HLS — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:01:00 -0800

How do I find someone to buy/license my patent for silent velcro? I know this sounds like a joke, but I have an idea for a new type of "velcro" which is completely silent (also more durable and less bulky than regular velcro). I don't want to manufacture it myself. How do I find someone to sell or license it to?

Thank you!

How can I find out if my employer is using a cell phone jamming device?

Anonymous — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:39:30 -0800

I suspect my employer has installed a cell phone jamming device . How do I find it if they have? At the risk of sounding like a paranoid kook - I suspect that my employer may have set up an electronic device to interfere with cell phone usage at my place of work. As of a few days ago, in a very specific area of my building radiating out of one point about 25 feet, all cell phone signals go to one bar or zero out completely. The loss/severe reduction in signal affects both CDMA and GSM phones. If you step beyond the threshold of a separating wall, the signal returns full force.

Is there a feasible way to find out if there is a cell phone jammer being used in this area?

How to use the full version of Google Translate from an iPhone

greenmagnet — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:15:49 -0800

How can I use the normal web version of Google Translate from my iPhone? It's automatically redirecting me to their iPhone-optimized version, which doesn't have all the options I need. The two things that make it completely useless for me are that, as far as I can tell:

1. Not all languages are supported (Hebrew is the one I need); and
2. Translating a full page by pasting its URL isn't supported.

Which would be fine with me, if I could just use their normal non-iPhone-optimized site, but it automatically redirects me to the iPhone version, which is really annoying me.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions...and apologies if this is a stupid question; I'm an iPhone newbie. :)

Programmable winch motor

allelopath — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 06:24:49 -0800

I need a programmable winch-like motor for an art project. The motor would act like a winch, reeling and unreeling cable. The motor would be on the floor, the cable would go from the motor to a pulley on the ceiling, then down to attach to the work. The work would weigh less than 100 lbs, so a winch made for a truck would be overkill, though I guess it wouldn't hurt. It needs to be programmable. I need to be able to program how much cable is reeled/unreeled, the speed of the reel/unreel, and the time between reel and unreel.

What is out there?

Mp3 recorder for kids

FidelDonson — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 13:11:27 -0800

My daughter would love a toy like the Fischer Price tape recorder from my childhood. A simple sturdy mp3 recorder with a microphone that can be operated by a small child. Does that perfect gift exist? My google skills turn op nothing.

Video Filter

Amby72 — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 11:54:05 -0800

Will a Canon Vixia HF20 record in any other format than AVCHD? I want to get a Canon Vixia HF20. I only have a P4 pc this year, but plan on upgrading to a a new pc in ~4 months. I want to be able to record in something I can modify now, or at least save on disk until I have something that I can edit it with. Also, as most of my relatives don't have HD TVs, recording in standard definition for now doesn't bother me, and would make it easier to redistribute. I figure if I buy a nice camera now, even if I shoot in SD it should look nicer than video shot through an SD camcorder of the same quality.

1. Can I shoot video in an easier to edit format?
2. Is all video filmed on this widescreen?

I am looking to see if anyone has experience with this that can tell me what my options are. Thanks.

What's the best cable for my original iPhone, if I'm using it for live music?

ejfox — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:03:24 -0800

I want to play some iPhone music apps live on stage with my band. I'd like to plug my iPhone into an amp. However, I have the iPhone 2G (The original) which doesn't have a normal headphone-out. This output is going bad, anyway. Is there a cable to get sound from the dock connector so I could feed it to the amp? If you play music live with an iPhone (especially the original) how do you do it? Also, have you encountered any problems? Any tips/tricks?

Also any music creation app recommendations would be nice.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Help me force my mom into 2003!

Madamina — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 09:51:20 -0800

Giftfilter: My contrarian technophobe mother has indicated that she "might like to experiment with an iPod." Which one should we get her, and how can we make this as easy as possible? My mom is a terrible, terrible technophobe, though I am convinced that half of it is simply her need to be a special snowflake. Refuses to get a microwave (even though she subsists almost entirely on leftovers and tea), refuses to get a cell phone (but will gladly commandeer that of a complete stranger if she feels like it). My patience with her techno-whining ran out around the time my 94-year-old great-aunt got on Facebook.

However, she is intrigued by the ability to take an iPod from room to room and dock it in speakers. She's also been downloading podcasts individually. She is very close to her next-door neighbors, who are more or less my age, and likes how they've used theirs this way. So between them, me and my dad with our iPhones, she could have someone show her how to do things.

I have a 30 GB iPod Classic that is about six years old. I don't use it myself, and she's welcome to it. However, I think that an iPod Touch might be a little easier for her to figure out. Also, a new one would have the most current warranty/help specs available.

We plan to open it before Christmas and prefill it with all of her music. (She has a PC that is entirely her own, so we plan to sneak in there and put the stuff on her iTunes before giving it to her.) I realize she can go in there and switch stuff in and out, but she is so hand-flaily that I'd prefer to do that as little as possible, so we'll probably try to get a 16 or 32 GB model. The Gmail solution, if you will: just have enough space on there that you never have to deal with it.

An iPhone would, of course, be most appropriate, but she would be frightened by it (seriously, she would put on a big show) and she would absolutely refuse to pay 70 bucks a month. Which is unfortunate, because she would LOVE the ability to take pictures of random stuff with the camera.

So I have two related questions:

1. People keep telling me that the iPod Touch would be way more scary to a technophobe than an iPod Classic, and I remain unconvinced (mainly because of the source). To me, it seems like the visual interface would be easier, especially if she's seen me and my dad use our iPhones. When she was telling me how she wanted to do this, she seemed like she was confused by the whole finger-twirly scroll action on an old iPod. Which would be better?

2. Are the second generation ones just as good as the third generation ones? It looks like the big thing she'd miss out on if she got a second-gen one would be voice controls/voice memos, and I highly doubt she'd use those. Apps wouldn't interest her, although she might use maps and the notepad... that sort of thing.

Anyone else with advice for introducing their parents to iPods, or similar, be my guest. Thanks!

Most protective cases and accessories for iPhone 3GS?

shivohum — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 09:17:41 -0800

I'm a clutz, so my iPhone needs protection. What are the best cases for shielding an Iphone 3GS from drops and spills? Do I need other accessories, too, like screen protectors - and if so which ones?

UPS and battery reference on the large scale

thewalrus — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 05:04:11 -0800

I would like to learn more about large-scale UPS systems, particularly the battery strings used in traditional RBOC/Telco applications. These are the sort of beasts that use huge strings of 6V 220aH deep cycle batteries, or even large numbers of 2V 400aH batteries on very strong earthquake-resistant shelving wired up to create a 48V mega-battery. Can anyone point me to the most definitive reference materials on the subject?

My Mom has scleral buckles in both eyes after retinal detachments. Can she enjoy Avatar in 3D?

lilywing13 — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 22:45:07 -0800

My Mom has scleral buckles in both eyes after retinal detachments. Can she enjoy Avatar in 3D? History, surgery, and how she sees now backgrounds included. My Mom has always been very, very near-sighted (She was a preemie at a hard time and there have been immune system and eye problems over the years.) and had complications after cataract surgery that resulted in a scleral buckle in one eye and a non-complete saving of her vision in that eye. She describes the vision in her weaker eye as high-contrast primary colors. Laser surgery has removed a "skwintch" in her vision that she described as her "Mickey Mouse."

She also has a scleral buckle in her stronger eye from another retinal detachment (unrelated to the cataract surgery, but probably from being a preemie), but that surgery was an astounding success, probably because Mom noticed the symptoms immediately and drove herself straight to her great doctor.

Over time, her good eye has been taking over, so her overall daytime vision is actually a lot better than it ever was pre-surgery. She needs reading glasses now for closeup work, rather than taking off her glasses for it.

My Mom went through a lot of hard times and has new "bionic" eyes now. I'm so impressed with her patience, effort, and grace while she handled these things. Oh, she's also been a commercial artist for about 3 decades. (She uses Macs, I mostly use PCs, and we still find peace.)

I've checked the previous posts, because her Xmas present from my Dad is to get taken to see Avatar in an IMAX in the newest 3D. They don't want to pay for the tickets if she won't enjoy it. They aren't going immediately. They just want to know if the extra trouble will be wasted. She'd still enjoy, I think, to see the movie without the 3d, but if she could have that extra bit, it would make her so very happy.

Sorry for the length, but I love my Mom and want her to not be frustrated by the technology and time and money. If they drive an hour and spend the extra money on IMAX 3D and she can't enjoy it, well, my Dad and I will be frustrated along with her. So, we just want to know what to expect.

As a side-note, my Dad has trifocals from being far-sighted. He doesn't expect to enjoy it as much as my Mom, but if the 3D is not going to work for him, they'd rather enjoy it together without. Personally, I'm waiting for the DVD and not planning on going to a theater for it at all. This is all for my folks. Thank you very much for any input.

An easier modem power-cycle?

cgs — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:27:05 -0800

I want to add a power switch to my modem + router so I can easily restart them. Advice? When my connection poops out, I do the following:
1. unplug my cable modem + router
2. wait a bit
3. plug back in the modem
4. pause, then power up router.

And I do all this by squatting down, moving some crap around on my shelf, reaching behind each and pulling out its power source. I'd like to buy something or splice something so that I can flip an easily-reached switch, then flip it back on and it does it all.

Questions:
1. do I need to wait (in step 2)? I've heard I need to wait for the ip address to reset.
2. do I need to pause in step 4? I thought I should wait for the modem to do its thing before turning on the router.

If #2 is "no", then I guess I could just get a powerstrip w/ a switch on it. Any better ideas?

Thanks for your help-
cgs

How to search multiple sites at once

jverdone — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:31:44 -0800

Is there a software/service that allows you to search specific websites rather than just through than the internet as a whole? I have a select list of sites I refer to weekly to find specific content. Any ideas? Ideally, it would be a service that allows me search multiple keywords and even add new sites from CSV.

Bitte helf mir!

miss lynnster — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 06:41:27 -0800

I'm on my way to Austria for a few weeks. Looking for a handy German language app for my Blackberry Tour to help me as I struggle to remember the language. Is there one? While we're here, any other good world travel apps you recommend? I'll be in Paris for two days, then Vienna and points beyond.

I'm new to this Blackberry thang really, so I'm not familiar with many of the apps yet... please hook me up, you young hipster people.

Thanks! :D

Power Button on iBook G4 Inoperable -- what now?

fantine — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:56:48 -0800

To transport or not to transport, that is the question! I have an iBook G4 that has been my primary computer for a few years now. It contains the bulk of my 30 GB + music collection among other things. My main computer is now a MacBook. Though the Macbook has a great deal of memory, it doesn't have enough for all my music, so I have yet to get that off my iBook.

A while ago, I spilled soup on the iBook G4 and many of its keys no long work (though I've been able to operate it just fine with an external keyboard). This includes the power on/off button, so I have not closed the screen, put it to sleep, or turned it off for several weeks now.

Now, however, I am heading home for Christmas break and am not sure what is the best course of action to take. I don't mind leaving it at school, but I do plan to acquire an external hard drive for my music (sometimes I've been planning on for a while, just haven't had the funds), so I could possibly bring home the iBook G4 in the car to transfer the music over break. However, I have always been told to close or shut down a laptop before moving it, and it makes me nervous to imagine a 4 hr + car ride in which the laptop could be jolted. Also, its battery life is not that great and it will certainly go to sleep from low battery within two hours.

Is there any way to wake up an iBook G4 without using the power button? I know that shutting the laptop and re-opening it *usually* brings forth the login box, but sometimes it doesn't on the G4. I don't want to bring back my G4 if it means it will enter an eternal sleep.

Loud speaker. Quiet speaker. Alternate at random.

TheSecretDecoderRing — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:41:24 -0800

I want to listen to my digital music player at work (technically, WMAs and not MP3s) through speakers rather than headphones. With the latter, all my songs sound fairly consistent in volume. With the former, they're all over the map and ditto for the dynamic range. Suggestions? I'm using PC speakers. They seem of good enough quality, but is that what's magnifying the variation in volume? Would a cheaper, weaker set of speakers actually make it better?

This is at work, so sound quality and bass isn't too important. And I keep the volume just loud enough so I can hear it, and the environment is usual office ambience/conversations. I've tried maxing out the speakers and adjusting the player, vice versa, and in between on both.

I'd prefer to avoid the hassle of normalization software, unless there's something out there for WMAs that's really easy and effective. USB access to the work computer is restricted. Hopefully others have had similar problems and have found workarounds as simple as just getting the right speakers. Thanks in advance.

What is this rusty thing?

kenko — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 17:31:14 -0800

While running errands today I found a rusty metal thing on the sidewalk. Naturally I took it home with me. But I don't know what it is. Do you? It's very heavy.

Speaker troubleshooting

Neiltupper — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:59:36 -0800

Loudspeaker troubleshooting. I have a pair of Boston Acoustic A60 speakers. They are two-way speakers, and in one of them the woofer does not produce any sound (not even distortion). The tweeter is OK. I've localized the problem to the speaker rather than the amp. All the connections inside the cabinet seem ok. What is my next step? I have common electrical tools and instruments but I'm not sure what to look for.

Tell me what to buy myself for xmas!

cgg — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:31:01 -0800

What cool tech toy should I buy? My family isn't doing presents this year. Given that, I'm taking the money I would have spent on them (or rather, them on me), and buying myself something fun. Trouble is, I can't figure out what that fun should be... I've got about $200 to spend, $250 max. I'm looking for something techy and fun. I'm a tech geek, but not an audiophile. I live in a Linux world and love my iPhone, for example, but I'm still ok with the crappy original earbuds. I love some of the the ideas at thinkgeek, but their ridiculous shipping costs to Canada ($15-$50 bucks!) means it's gotta be really really worth it, and so far I haven't seen anything that is. I have a PS2, Wii and Nintendo DS, but I don't use them much anymore. I live in a very cramped condo, so anything bulky is out.

I was debating getting a Slingbox and its iPhone app, which together with a jailbroken iPhone means I'd be able to watch TV and my video library (thanks to my Tivo server) anywhere I want. Although cool, I have a feeling I wouldn't really need to watch a lot of TV on my iPhone after the initial honeymoon period wore off.... or not. I'm not sure. And it seems so... 2005. Still... TV on the iPhone!

But before I meander down to the evil BestBuy (it's on sale this week) to pick one up, I'd thought I'd see if the Mefi geeks had any better ideas. What should I spend my Xmas money on? Difficulty: it has to be available in Canada for less than an arm a leg. What would you buy, if you were me?

Compact, HD camcorder with manual control options?

bondcliff — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:11:16 -0800

I’m looking to buy a compact, flash-based, HD-capable camcorder with the ability to shut off automatic controls such as white balance and auto-focus. In addition to the usual stuff one does with a camcorder I’d also like to use it for stop-motion, time-lapse, and some other projects where I’ll need to shut off white balance and possibly auto-focus.

Something like the Flip or the Kodak Zi8 would be ideal but I don’t see that they have the ability to shut off these automatic features. If I have to go for a more traditional shaped camera, that’s fine. I’d like it to be somewhat small and inexpensive. Preferably under $500.00.

It needs to be able to do at least 720p HD widescreen. Good quality, good frame-rate, etc.

I’d prefer flash based but if a hard-drive based camera is my only option I’ll go with it. Tape is right out.

In a pinch, a regular point-and-shoot camera will do as long as the video quality is decent and I can shut the automatic stuff off.

If what I want does not exist, please let me know that too.

The case of the haunted xbox.

cirrostratus — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 09:48:39 -0800

My internet connection is haunted! I lose connectivity the second I turn on my xbox, even when the network cable is unplugged. How can that be? The situation: we have Mediacom service in my apartment that provides a connection for two computers and xbox live on two xboxes via a netgear router. This works fine most of the time until the second I turn on the second xbox and the internet goes out every time. When this happens and the mediacom modem starts blinking just the internet light until we reset it. Eventually the internet seems to come back after reseting the modem and it seems to come back faster if there are less than four things hooked up to the router.

Here's the weird part: the connection breaks even if we have the xbox's network cable unplugged.

How can an xbox that isn't even hooked up to the router effect our connection?

More importantly, how can I prevent this from happening in the future so I can get down to business and kill some zombies in Left 4 Dead?

Automated mapping software

nushustu — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 09:15:03 -0800

I need an app that would allow many users to input a few bits of data - name and zip code, for instance - and then would map the results of all the individual inputs onto a map. Assume that I have no programming skill. What I hope exists is a template or something that could create a form on a webpage that, once a person enters their contact information, it stores said info in a database and simulatenously adds pertinent location data to a map on the same website. So if John in Cincinnati fills out a form, the website updates the map to include a pushpin with John's name in Cincinnati or (preferably) in a particular zip code in Cincinnati.

The push pins don't have to be in some exact location; I don't need it to be so specific that it includes long/lat data.

Even if it's not dead-easy, I can get someone with more computer skills to do this; I just need to be able to tell my boss what the best options might be.

Multiplayer iPhone games?

Tu13es — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 05:13:44 -0800

What are some multiplayer iPhone games that don't require players to be actively using their phone to play? I just discovered Words With Friends (and Chess With Friends) and love it because I don't need to be actively using my phone at all times to play it. If you haven't played them, they're basically Scrabble (or Chess) games where you open the app, play your move, then wait until your opponent makes their move. Perfect for when I'm at work and can only use my phone occasionally.

Games that are only multiplayer over wifi or bluetooth are out. Bonus points for games that are free, but I'd consider paid ones as well. Bonus points for apps with Push notifications when it's your turn too.

Typing: from 60wpm to 90wpm

ekpyrotic — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 17:54:03 -0800

From a reasonably good [60wpm] looking-at-the-keys typist to a reasonably good [90wpm] touch typist. I currently type at ~60wpm. I have to look at the keyboard every 3-or-so words. I want to touch type for 2 reasons,

1. To improve speed,
2. So I can copy text effectively, i.e., not have to look at the keys now and again.

Where's the best place to go from here?