will iTunes 9 have Social media integration and blu-ray support?

Brandon Davenport Aug 12, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us Apple, News

A new report suggests that the next version of Apple's iTunes could carry support for Blu-ray discs, visual management and rearrangement capabilities for App Store software, and integration with social media Web sites.

I am exited about this because, if i can take this beautiful application known as iTunes and tie it together with twitter, facebook, youtube, linkdin, myspace, or even my own website, that would be the best thing that ever happened!

This would be an amazing competitor to apps like Boxee and XBMC, but how is this going to "revolutionize" the way we consume, share and discover music, video and news.

One of the new additions to iTunes is said to include Blu-ray support which lines up nicely with a recent AppleInsider report about Apple integrating Blu-ray into their new iMac line-up," the report states. "Something else that will most likely make a bunch of people happy is that we’ve been told iTunes 9 will finally include the ability to visually organize and arrange your iPhone and iPod touch applications. Something that wasn’t so clearly described was some kind of Twitter/Facebook/Last.fm integration. Maybe broadcasting what song you’re playing to your friends?

Via AppleInsider

The rumors regarding Blu-ray corroborate with a report this week from AppleInsider. Sources cryptically suggested that two compelling new features would come with Apple's newest iMacs, leading some to speculate that official Blu-ray support from the company could be coming in the near future. One of those features is said to have long been on the wish-lists of many Mac users while the other is expected to cater to the semi-professional audio/video crowd.

Facebook lite? Simplifying to combat Twitter

Ricardo Trejo Aug 12, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us Websites

First, Facebook buys up FriendFeed, and now Facebook lite appears out of nowhere? Are there still any doubts that Facebook wants to take on Twitter? And by the look of the new beta design, I think the answer is, I don't think so.

Facebook has lost a bit of its steam ever since Twitter has become the media giant that it is. And from the look of all this movement, they're been planning a comeback. Facebook lite is a secret beta that was meant to be be invite only, and tested only in areas where broadband speeds aren't what we're used to. However, it so seems that a little too many users were selected for the beta, which is what caused this spark in curiousty in the question: What is Facebook Lite?

Taking away all the app's and weight that the full version of Facebook has, we're left with a strikingly Twitter resembling site. Wonder why that is? Remember though, this is only beta, and everything is subject to change. You have to admit though, it does look much better this way.

[Via TechCrunch]

A/C can be Expensive, so Build your Own!

Ricardo Trejo Aug 12, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us

Going to college to live in a dorm? Better get use to no A/C... or do you? The guys at HackCollege make their way to LifeHacker to show off their best back to school tip yet: a dorm-safe DIY air conditioner for under $40.

[Via LifeHacker]

RIAA, the Cause of Digital piracy?

Ricardo Trejo Aug 12, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us Music

If you dare go to the comments section of this Gizmodo post, be prepared for a ton of angry music fans, both pro and anti-piracy. Greg Kot is rock critic for the Chicago Tribune, and he's been there for quite some time; 19 years to be exact. What's gotten this guy so much press in the past day? His belief that the music industry was what caused the piracy boom in the 2000's.

Kot wrote a book not but 3 months ago that chronicles what the music industry, and bands, have done to combat the changes in digital progression, tech, and piracy. With lots of steam coming in, he did an interview with The Sound of Young America podcast Monday and gave his own retelling of how he feels what got us to where we are right now in music.

"I think the music industry for a long feels like now, 'man, if only we could go back to the middle ages. It was so much easier back then. We could rip off these artists anytime we want."

"The issue of being able to control your intellectual property in an age when basically that intellectual property can be digitized and copied and instantly sent out all over the world the instant you let go of it is ridiculous. You're not going to be able to control it. The technology is always going to stay a step or two ahead of your ability to corral, to control it, and determine who gets to access it. So, let's just put that aside. Once artists get passed the issue of, 'hey I can't control it anymore. It's going to get out there, but I still want to be compensated.' That's, I think the key issue: How do we compensate artists once they lose control over the work, because they're going to lose control over the work.

I can't say I'm happy about it. I write books, I have intellectual property out there as well, that's getting copied, being ripped off, if you will, everyday on the internet. How am I going to be compensated for 5 or 10 years? But I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. Like I said, we're going to need to rebuild the system from the ground up. And right we have too many entrenched people who are saying, 'no, no, no! We want it to be like the 20th century again.' Well, it's not... That's to me the way the record industry is. Hey, I'm sorry, it's not 1997 anymore. We have to deal with this new reality and figure how we're going to make this work. And so far I don't see enough brain power being invested in creating new systems that deal with this new reality, because the new reality is here and it's just going to be more profound in another 5 years." 

I don't think he's off at all on this topic, he speaks a lot of truth. Sure, pirates created this new system, and they got into it because it was there and it was free, but without them music itself would not be where it is today. Music has never been as popular as it is right now ever in history, to paraphrase Kot. 

[Via Gizmodo]

5 free professional Wordpress themes / templates for your blog / gallery

Lots of people are struggling with the templates on Wordpress. Trying to get it to look just right. Wondering how the hell to use Photoshop to make a decent logo, or even banging your head against the wall over the jumbled, confusing CSS and HTML. If you don't know what that is, you especially need to look at this! If you do and you struggle with it all the time, you deserve a break, and try out some new and totally free custom made Wordpress themes. They are made by, and only byprofessionals and your site will stand out from the crowd and demand hit after hit, just to see that fantastic template you have! ...by the way these are free, and you can use them without restrictions, (so use them for whatever you want).You can freely use it for both your private and commercial projects, including software, online services, templates and themes. The theme may not be resold, sublicensed or rented.

What do you know? Young people Love to pirate!

Ricardo Trejo Aug 11, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us Music

Photo by carolyn.will

Or so UK Music says. Who's UK Music? They watch out for the interests of all involved in the music business. So it's no surprise that they want to get to the bottom of who exactly isn't paying up for the music they provide. A recent online survey by the University Of Hertfordshire, for UK Music, was held in spring of this year, and more than 1,800 young people throughout the UK participated. What did the results show

*Music remains the most valued form of entertainment

*Young people have an inherent sense of what copyright is, but choose to ignore it – the vast majority of respondents knew that sharing copyrighted content is not legal, yet continue to do so

*87% said that copying between devices is important to them

*86% of respondents have copied a CD for a friend; 75% have sent music by email, Bluetooth, Skype or MSN; 57% have copied a friend's entire music collection; 39% have downloaded music from an online storage site; and 38% have ripped a TV, radio or internet stream.

*The computer is the main entertainment hub – 68% of respondents use it every day to listen to music

*Ownership of music is hugely important – both online and offline

*Popularity of P2P remains unchanged since 2008 – 61% said they download music using P2P networks or torrent trackers. Of this group, 83% are doing so on a weekly or daily basis

*There is real interest for new licensed services. 85% of P2P downloaders said they would be interested in paying for an unlimited all-you-can-eat MP3 download service

So what does this all mean? It means that young adults are complicated when it comes to music. I know that I, myself, would love to have a service where I could have unlimited downloads for a small fee. And maybe such place exists now, but I haven't become aware of it. Spotify is a great step forward, but its one downside is the fact that you're still streaming music. If it can be added to your portable device then that's what we're talking about. But of course that would mean owning it, and that would mean paying for it. It's a big mess, but the music industry has to decide what its course of action is going to be, and soon. Everyday that passes millions of pirates around the world are downloading music for free. It's time for a change. A welcomed change with that input of the users themselves.

[Via UK Music]

halo 2: reason For 100 friend limit On xbox Live

Okay Geek Team Aug 10, 2009 Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Me Follow Us Gaming

I only have about 20 or so friends on Xbox live, so I’ve never run into this problem myself, but I do know a few people who wish the 100 friend limit went bye bye. Microsoft never came out and told us the reason why there was a limit when the service moved over to the 360. It seems like we may have gotten our answer. G4, of all people, put up an exclusive story on their site today about receiving a tip from someone working within the MS walls. Apparently, the sole reason for there being a 100 friend cap is none other than Halo 2.

Seems like a patch can’t fix it, because obviously, if that was all it would’ve been fixed already. So for the moment there’s no real solution except hope people stop playing Halo 2, but that doesn’t seem likely as it’s the top game played on Live from the original Xbox every single week. MS hopes that Halo: ODST will convert those last remaining Halo 2 players over to 3 and ODST when it’s released, but don’t count on it. If ODST plays just like Halo 3, in terms of multiplayer, then don’t get your hopes up. Some aren’t fond of the changes from 2 to 3.

[Via G4’s the Feed]