compression
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The latest on Acorn
Just about a week after its release, Acorn (Gus Mueller's sparkling little image editor) is looking a 1.0.1 release dead in the face. Mueller hasn't updated it officially yet, but he has released development builds of both VoodooPad and Acorn over on his site.The newest Acorn release will include a JPEG compression/quality slider when saving, as well as a number of bug fixes (everyone loves those, right?). If you want to try it out now, you can hit the dev build, but the rest of us will be happy waiting for an official release I'm sure.Mueller has also created a wiki just for Acorn, and it's got a few nice tips and tricks, a plugin section, and a writeup on the Acorn file format. It's pretty barebones at the moment. but hey, it's a wiki, and it just started. Give it some time (or some contributions of your own), and it'll likely soon be an invaluable guide to all the Acorn users out there.
Aussies criticizing Seven Network for compressing HD feeds
Same story, different continent. The compression bug has seemingly struck again, and this time its aggravating those Down Under who'd like to enjoy Seven Network's 1080i programming in all of its high-definition glory. After just recently flipping the switch to broadcast content in HD, a sect of Australians have already begun to grumble over the "relatively low amount of bandwidth the network has allocated to the high-definition channel." Of course, it should be noted that "most" viewers have seen no reason to get bent out of shape, but for those relaxing in Oz, what say ye on the Seven situation?
Free DivX Pro license if you act quickly
The fine folks over at Macenstein spotted this special deal: a free license for the Mac version of DivX Pro, if you send in your email address today -- a $20 value. I can't see the end-of-offer indication on the site, but I'll take their word for it.With the Pro version you get the free player (naturally), plus DivX Converter for batch encoding and the DivX Pro codec for export from QuickTime Pro-aware applications. Based on the theory that you can never be too rich, too thin or have too many video compression applications, it's worth checking out.Thanks Jonathan & Nik!
AP disses Apple TV
Peter Svensson of the Associated Press likes the look of Apple TV as a gadget but declared that its video output came up short. "It's as if Apple had introduced an iPod that sounded like a cassette player," he writes. Svensson downloaded a copy of Pirates of the Caribbean from iTunes and declared it "barely watchable". The article is a bit hazy about testing details, but I'm pretty sure Svensson neither tried watching any High Def content on Apple TV nor did he compare the same data files on both units. Should he blame Apple TV hardware when iTunes compression might have been at fault for his viewing experience? Perhaps a little. Given the tight bond between Apple TV and iTunes, Apple does have to stand behind its current library of video data.
Corncob waste could enable methane use in vehicles
Aside from the obvious choice, there's vehicles scooting around on bioethanol, batteries, fuel cells, and all sorts of other alternatives, but a recent breakthrough in Kansas City, Missouri has opened up the possibility of using natural gas. Currently, the cheaper and cleaner burning methane isn't feasible in modern vehicles due to the extremely high pressure (3,600 psi) and gargantuous tanks required to actually use it. Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia and Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City have devised a way to change all that, however, by using corncob waste to create "carbon briquettes with complex nanopores capable of storing natural gas at an unprecedented density of 180 times their own volume and at one seventh the pressure of conventional natural gas tanks." In layman's terms, this discovery allows natural gas to be held under much less pressure and in thin-walled tanks similar to cells used on current vehicles, which could instantly make natural gas a viable (and readily available) alternative fuel source. A prototype system has been working just fine since last October, and the backers are currently crafting a second revision in hopes of storing even more natural gas and driving production costs down, but there's still no hard deets on when this invention could see commercial light.[Via AutoblogGreen]
Detection algorithms to enable sign language on-the-go
Sure, texting has taken the entire world by storm and is likely to remain the next best option to actually speaking to someone for quite some time, but for those who feel that keying in paragraphs of information takes a bit too much time, they're looking for alternatives. Designed to assist the mute and deaf (or those who just love the limelight) who rely on cellphones, the MobileASL video compression project seeks to enable sign language over video telephony, even on less-than-speedy data networks. Developed at the University of Washington, the specialized skin detection algorithms are able to key in on critical moving parts (read: hands and fingers) and utilize the limited bandwidth to broadcast the most important vectors first. The ASL encoders are compatible with the H.264 / AVC compression standard, and while it wasn't directly stated just how viable this option was for those stuck on a 1xRTT connection, you can hit the read link to get in on the user studies if you're down with signing.[Via Slashdot]
CableLabs names 15Mbps as "safe harbor bitrate" for MPEG2 HD VOD
We already know how fond CableLabs is of HD VOD content, so it makes perfect sense that the gurus behind the scenes are aiming to provide media that satisfies the discerning eye of the HD viewer. Considering that nearly every HDTV owner has a sneaking suspicion that they're not getting the bandwidth they're paying for at times, CableLabs new specifications hope to ensure that HD VOD viewers don't get the "HD Lite" experience. While the recommended SD VOD rate remained steady at just 3.75Mbps, CableLabs has named 15Mbps the "safe harbor bitrate" to allow all forms of HD VOD content (including talking heads and fast-moving action films) to be seen at a quality that represents what HDTV should be about, including 5.1 audio and an absence of pixelation. Of course, these latest suggestions are entirely based on MPEG2 transfers, and could very well change if MPEG4 starts running the show, but at the very least it's good to see someone making sure we get our due bandwidth.
NVIDIA vs. ATI for HD movie playback
Whether playing HD DVD and Blu-ray discs from a drive, or files obtained or stored via other means, you'll need plenty of horsepower to keep the HD flowing smoothly. Hardware Zone took a look at NVIDIA and ATI's competing platforms for hardware acceleration of h.264 and VC-1 decoding on PCs. They tested a few 1080i h.264-encoded movies from Japan and found neither solution was able reduce CPU load by more than 20-30% on their Core 2 Duo equipped test machine, with similar reductions on less CPU-intensive VC-1 discs. Overall they like the NVIDIA's PureVideo GeForce 7600 GT over the comparably priced ATI Radeon X1650 XT with Avivo, but check out the head to head for all the numbers before deciding which videocard goes in your next Media PC.[Via MPEG4.net]
ADS Tech's Instant Video To-Go offers up iPod / PSP video conversion on a USB stick
Sure, there's a myriad of fairly technical methods to convert DVDs, media clips, and TiVo captures to files that play nice with your iPod, PSP, or other portable video player, but ADS Tech is hoping to give us all an easy way out of transcoding every file in our ever-growing media library. Touted as the "industry's first hardware-based H.264 conversion solution for PCs," the Instant Video To-Go comes in a handy USB stick format, and houses a "hardware accelerator" that enables consumers to convert videos for handheld playback "up to five times faster than real time." The device reportedly supports MP4, MP3, AVI, WMV, MOV, RM, JPG, TIFF, and MTP, and provides a "two step procedure" for getting your videos ready for your PMP. Moreover, it can supposedly squash 100 minutes of MPEG2 / VOB into a 320 x 240 H.264 file in "approximately 20 minutes," which ain't half bad if things really work as described. Nevertheless, ADS Tech's sure-to-be-popular device will set you back just $79.95, and should be available on the web right now.[Via CNET]
On2 Technologies to demo TrueMotion VP6 / VP7 codecs at CES
Likely coinciding with XM's unveiling of its media-packed "infotainment" concept vehicle at CES, On2 Technologies will be showcasing its TrueMotion VP6 and VP7 compression codecs. While On2's codecs have been at work in XM's gadgetry (among other things), On2 is now aiming to take its compression software to the high definition realm as well as beefing up its stake in the portable arena. The VP6 codec will primarily be used in VOD, broadcast, digital video signage, and other bandwidth-constrained networks and mass-market devices for fixed and mobile video; the VP7, however, will demonstrate compression technology at "data rates as low as 2Mbps," which will supposedly allow "greater penetration of high definition video across low cost devices and existing networks for on-demand, broadcast and other streaming applications." The technology could eventually be used to broadcast HD content over 2.5G, 3G, and 4G mobile networks whenever we get displays large enough (and with enough pixels) to view them, but we'd be perfectly content with a little HD streaming on our navigation systems for now.
Hacked PS1 emulation on PSP now more efficient [update 1]
Dark_AleX has released another edition of his custom PSP firmware. Just as it appears '3.03 Open Edition Revision A' (OE-A) is essentially a modified version of Sony's official v3.03 fimware. 3.03OE-A also comes with a modified version of Sony's PS1 emulator, popstation; and with this latest custom firmware release, custom-made ISOs (game files) can now be compressed to conserve memory stick space.Ethical concerns aside, it's amazing how the PSP homebrew scene has exploded ahead of Sony, unlocking the company's emulator for use with all PS1 titles. With just a few hours of research, a stack of old PlayStation games on hand, and perhaps a little trial and error, you now have the power to forge your own emulation experience -- imagine that. You don't even need a PlayStation 3.Update: clarified that popstation is a modified version of Sony's PS1 emulator.
New tech puts the squeeze on texture files
A company called Allegorithmic recently held a presentation at London's Game Developers Conference and briefly talked about their advanced texture compression technology. The uninterestingly named ProFX and MaP Zone 2 programs aim to reduce the size of in-game texture files by up to 70% -- with no image quality lost. One of the games utilizing the technology turns out to be Roboblitz which, like every other Xbox Live Arcade game, is expected to come in at under 50MB. Allegorithmic's software supposedly reduced the entire game's collection of textures to a size less than 280KB. Efficient compression techniques, if implemented correctly, could easily be seen as a way to obviate the initial need for new storage mediums such as HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. However, the Bit-Tech article points out that designers are just as likely to fill the extra space to create even more rich and varied textures. Instead, the biggest winnner would be the world of digital distribution. Though broadband speeds are constantly increasing, nobody likes waiting for a progress bar to fill. Casual or arcade games could certainly benefit greatly from smaller overall file sizes as they vie for your limited time and attention. [Via PS3 Fanboy, thanks to everyone that sent this in.]
Fox announces first Blu-ray releases: 8 titles, BD-J, MPEG-4 AVC, 50GB
Fox has announced they are jumping into the Blu-ray market in a big way this fall, with eight titles scheduled and the debut of many of the advanced features we've been expecting to see from Blu-ray since launch. Slated to launch just ahead of the Playstion 3 in Japan November 10th followed by North America, Europe and Australia release on November 14th, all of the movies will carry an MSRP of $39.98 and appear to be well worth it. Also announced today is the day-and-date with the DVD release of Ice Age: The Meltdown on Blu-ray November 21st. The rundown of the titles and their features is as follows: Behind Enemy Lines: BD-J authored, DTS HD Lossless Master Audio and MPEG-4 compression. Includes several director commentaries and HD trailers for coming BD releases. Fantastic Four: DTS HD Lossless Master Audio, HD Trailers, HDMV authored. Kingdom of Heaven (Directors Cut): 50GB dual-layer Blu-ray disc to accommodate the 3 hour 42 minute movie DTS HD Master Lossless Audio, HDMV authored. Kiss of the Dragon: Director commentaries, HDMV authored, HD Trailers. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: BD-J authored, MPEG-4 AVC compression, special features including search index by actor/character/location and more, a first-person shooter game, up to 99 bookmarks, pop up animated trivia game and HD trailers. The Omen (666): DTS HD Lossless Master Audio, director commentaries plus BD-exclusive pop-up trivia track The Devils Footnotes exploring the history of 666. Speed: BD-J authored, DTS HD Lossless Master Audio, 56 category search index, Speed: Take Down Java game with six play modes and HD trailers. The Transporter: DTS HD Lossless Master Audio, HDMV authored, director commentaries, HD trailers. Twentieth Century Fox is obviously going the extra mile to show what Blu-ray can do in these initial releases, with features even Sony Pictures has put off until 2007 like BD-J. As the press release states, these titles and features have been chosen specifically to appeal to buyers of the Playstation 3 and Blu-ray early adopters. While you may be familiar with Blu-ray's advanced Blu-ray Java features obviously present in the BD-J authored releases, if you're unfamiliar with HDMV, that is the term for discs authored with simpler menus more reminiscent of traditional DVDs. While HD DVD has undoubtedly outclassed Blu-ray up to this point, it looks like the BDA's first strike back will come in November.
Warner Blu-ray releases may switch to VC-1 codec soon
A lot of the criticism leveled at early Blu-ray releases cited their use of the MPEG-2 video codec for compression on 25GB single-layer discs. According to Home Theater Spot, a Warner rep confirmed to them that Lethal Weapon, Blazing Saddles and Firewall will all be encoded with the Microsoft codec. Full Metal Jacket however will still ship as MPEG-2. With fixed Samsung BD-P1000 players and properly next-gen encoded titles, perhaps Blu-ray can stand up to HD DVD and show why it is worth the investment. No word on any new extras to take advantage of all that extra space however, we guess we'll just take one order of increased video quality at lower bitrates to go, thank you.[Via HDBlog]
Pre-release Blu-ray impressions roundup
We don't have a Samsung BD-P1000 yet, so we're busy reading the opinions posted by people who do. Apparently our local retailer has a policy about selling things "on or after their release date", whatever that means. Nevertheless, some have managed to get their hands on a Blu-ray player and movies already, despite the fact the movies don't officially release until tomorrow, and Samsung's baby isn't due until next week. If you're waiting anxiously to find out whether you should spend the $999 burning a hole in your pocket, you may want to take a look at these reviews.How are they? Decidedly mixed.
Overcompressed bitstarved HDTV frustrates World Cup fans
It's an unfortunate but familiar circumstance for many high definition television owners, after spending a lot of money on a new HDTV, hooked up the cable/satellite/antenna and settled in to watch the big game, only to get a blurry, blocky mess. While American soccer futbot football soccer fans have commented that they "can finally see the ball" during the World Cup broadcast, Korean watchers are flooding the nations three major broadcasters with complaints that they can't see anything thats moving quickly.The broadcasters have been testing a new multicasting system, MMS to broadcast more channels within the same frequency, lowering the bitrate from 19Mbps to 13Mbps. It looks like viewers noticed the difference, with threats to sue and other complaints posted on the internet. The Korean Broadcasting Commission is going to vote tomorrow on whether to continue the MMS test or not. Korea, we've got our fingers crossed. Whether or not someone will sue ESPN for their poor color commentary during games remains to be seen.
AircordAV promises wireless, lossless HD streaming
Certainly not the the first solution for streaming HD programming around your house, a new product called the AircordAV promises to dumb down the whole process into what would appear to be a 5-minute-install, and supports that sweet 1,080p resolution to boot. Instead of asking your existing router to do all the hard work, AircordAV comes with a base unit that hooks up to any of your home theater gear using HDMI, DVI, component, S-video, composite, or SCART connections, and creates its own 802.11g network with up to eight clients feeding any or all of your video displays. Aircord claims the product is capable of lossless streaming, and uses a proprietary technology to encode and decode your video signals, although the company's lack of a website or actual product shots makes us a bit wary of the whole thing. We'll find out in December if this clever idea can be turned into a working device -- that's when the AircordAV will supposedly be released -- and if it can, expect to cough up at least $500 to start cutting those cords.
Philips sues Kodak over patent infringement
It's been a mixed day over at Philips: on the one hand, they had the pleasure of announcing a new offspring, Liquavista, but now they've been forced to air some dirty laundry concerning fellow consumer electronics manufacturer Kodak, taking the NY-based company to court for allegedly infringing upon a sixteen-year-old patent. Philips claims that while several digital camera manufacturers license the JPEG compression technology protected by patent number 4,901,075 (refer to the schematic above for all of the technical details), Kodak refuses to do so, even though many of their products supposedly take advantage of the "Huffman codeword" magic outlined within. Financial details of the suit have not been made public, but Kodak doesn't sound like it's going to budge, saying that it will defend itself "vigorously."[Via Reuters]
Kensington laptop dock first to feature startup's multiple-monitors-over-USB tech
Although we're pretty sure that many of you wouldn't agree with Newnham Research CEO Michael Ledzion's assertion that "connecting a graphics card to a PC is hard, and expensive," you might still be interested in his company's technology for connecting multiple displays to a PC through a standard USB connection, which will debut in a Kensington laptop dock in June. The Cambridge, England-based startup is able to achieve this rather amazing feat through a hardware rendering engine call NIVO, which can either be built directly into a monitor or incorporated into other peripherals, and which uses proprietary compression algorithms to deliver video up to 1280 x 1024 at 75Hz. As you could probably guess, this technology isn't designed for gaming -- the company suggests using it to display "largely static images" -- although it's supposedly capable of HD playback, which is something we'd definitely like to see firsthand.[Via Extreme Tech]
Batch process your images with SmallImage
SmallImage is a nice piece of freeware for anyone who works with a lot of photos all day long. Just drop a folder full of images into SmallImage's main window, and you can remove your photos' embedded profiles, resize them, create thumbnails and then re-compress them with one click. As you can see from the screen shot to the right, SmallImage also provides a great deal of information on each image, like size, camera information, compression and metadata information. You can even remove or create your own preview icon for any image.SmallImage requires Mac OS 10.3.9 and is free.[Via FreeMacWare]
