Now from home

I wrote some time ago that I was having problems with my Windows Home Server and my main PC, mainly because the transfer speeds from my WHS to my PC were ridiculous. Uploads were fine though.

After looking into it for a long time, the problem was that my router/switch, an SMC Barricade, was not handling the traffic from the WHS properly. Every other PC was working right.

Anyway, I’ve changed the router by a Linksys WRT320n. This means that I’ve upgraded my LAN from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps.

Transfer speeds are now ok, getting 60 MB/s out of the box. Also, the wireless speed has improved dramatically, specially when using my iPhone 3Gs. Using my old router I was unable to watch YouTube videos and now they are loaded in no time.

I’ve been using this router only for a couple of days, but I’m already very happy with the upgrade.

I have had only one minor problem setting up the wireless connection. For some reason none of my WIFI devices were able to connect to the router. I needed to manually change the ‘WIFI channel’ from Auto to channel 11 in order to get it to work.

Last month, my Sony HC-90 Handycam stopped working. The failure was quite simple, the objective’s cover didn’t fully open. I tried to repair it myself but it was impossible. I contacted Sony Service Support but they asked me 60 €. Too much for such a simple problem.

I decided to check what the market could offer me. I remembered to have read some great reviews about the Flip Ultra camera, which opened  a new segment called ultaportable video cameras. I started reading reviews and comparisons charts with other ultraportable cameras.

Turns out that the Flip can’t be bought in Spain, so I lean towards the Creative Vado HD. It compares very good with the MinoHD.

For just 200 € shipped (much less if you can buy it from Amazon!) you get a video camera that fits in your pocket (just like a mobile phone), that can do HD (1280×720) and that has no moving parts. It has 8 GB of memory which is enough for 2 hours of high definition video. It also includes an HDMI cable.

Video quality is great even indoors with low light. Of course it cannot be compared with other bigger HD cameras, but it’s ok to shot home videos.

The camera has been designed with one goal in mind: simplicity. You turn on the camera (by the way is ready to shoot video in 1 second) and press the red button to start recording. Press it again to stop it. Each time you press the red button a new file is created.

The you can view the videos on the built-in small screen and delete those you don’t want. You can directly plug the camera to your TV (via HDMI), or connect it to any USB port in your computer and transfer the files.

It also includes some software to manage the videos and uploading them to YouTube and other services but I have not tried it yet. Honestly I don’t care about that software.

I’m very happy with the camera. The best advantage I see over traditional cameras is that you can bring it with you all the times and therefore you shoot a lot more videos. Ask my son

Microsoft has demoed a new device for their new  XBox 360 that removes any need for controllers. This device is able to track all your body, it has built-in speech recognition and more. The demo video is just awesome. I especially like the kun-fu game. If it’s as accurate as it seems, it could be a real step forward how we play games.

I also think that even some hardcore gamers won’t like the device, this add-on will achieve its goal; which is no other that to attract all those people who don’t play games.

Since I started working from home I tried to avoid the temptation of purchasing a console. I know it’s a time-sucker. However, I keep adding reasons to finally go ahead. Let’s see…

• It will precipitate the acquisition of a new TV. We’re still using an old (10 years) and heavy 32” Sony TV. It still looks superb which is a problem because I have no excuse to change it.
• A console will provide high-definition content for the new TV.
• Finally we’ll be able to see our photographs in the living room and not to force our family to stand up in front of my computer
• I need some game training. I have an 8 month old baby who is growing fast. I don’t want to be beaten by my own son in a few years. (That’s the secret reason why I’m doing push-ups too)
• I’ve shown this Project Natal to my wife and she really liked it.

I’ll keep adding good reasons in the months to come… Let’s see if I have enough by December