janstett
Oct 18, 11:32 AM
For those who aren't intimately familiar with HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, I've really gotten into it in the past few months so here's a quick primer:
Discs will be replaced by downloads? Let me know when I can download a movie in 1080p with lossless 5.1 sound in a reasonable amount of time. Perhaps to the iToons generation that thinks 128kbps sound is good you can live with downloaded movies, but for me I don't think CD is good enough (I'm an SACD/DVD-A geek). Likewise I don't think DVD is good enough, why do I want to go backwards (downloadable movies) instead of forward (HD disc)?
Blu-Ray is the superior format, on paper. No doubt. However, there are a couple of wrenches in the works.
First, both formats are actually 90% the same. The physical storage medium is based on the same principles (blue laser) but different implementation (mostly depth of the reflective layer in the substrate). Blu-Ray is slightly denser and offers a higher total capacity (50GB vs 34GB, something like that). Blu-Ray is actually sort-of a superset of DVD from there, once you get to what's actually on the disc. HD-DVD has a new encryption layer (they learned from CSS), Blu-Ray uses this same scheme and then puts a 2nd layer of encryption on top of it. Both use the same codecs -- MPEG2, MPEG-4 H.262, and VC1 (Microsoft's codec), and Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Pure HD, DTS Plus, etc.
I believe movie studio support determines who wins. The studios were split 50-50 pretty much. Then, something funny happened. Some HD-DVD studios announced they would ALSO support Blu-Ray. In my mind, that meant Blu-Ray wins.
The launch came, HD-DVD came out first and Toshiba led the way with a pair of chunky, heavy, PC-based players at $500 and $1000. Everyone hated the Toshiba players, they were slow, unwieldy, and have awful remotes. A few months later Blu-Ray launched with Samsung's $1000 player, and surprisingly this player was AWFUL, and the picture quality looks worse over HDMI than component because they forgot to turn off some video filtering. Worse, the Blu-Ray transfers thus far have been very poor quality. This seems to be because Blu-Ray is leaning towards old MPEG-2 HD transfers, while HD-DVD has embraced VC1 (which is the best of the 3 video codecs for quality and size) and gotten new encodings with Microsoft's attention. Then, Toshiba started putting out firmware updates for their HD-DVD players and suddenly their players didn't suck so bad.
So here we are; the only Blu-Ray player on the market is a Samsung, Sony has no presence. We're one month away from the launch of the PS3 (which will play Blu-Ray) and the X-Box 360 HD-DVD drive.
Right now, HD-DVD has all the momentum. The Blu-Ray titles are low quality, they have no $500 player, and HD-DVD is building a head of steam.
I know I'm the minority around here when I say this, but I don't own an iPod. :eek: Yeah, it's true... I personally don't care for the MP3 format and the lesser quality offerings of iTunes. If it isn't at least CD quality, uncompressed, I don't want it. And yes, I can hear the difference on my sound system which is a separate setup from my home theatre.
:) I love iPods but I know I'm trading off quality for convenience. Meanwhile, I'm re-ripping all of my hundreds of CDs into Apple lossless format and putting the CDs in storage. It's not SACD, but at least I'll be back to CD quality.
Discs will be replaced by downloads? Let me know when I can download a movie in 1080p with lossless 5.1 sound in a reasonable amount of time. Perhaps to the iToons generation that thinks 128kbps sound is good you can live with downloaded movies, but for me I don't think CD is good enough (I'm an SACD/DVD-A geek). Likewise I don't think DVD is good enough, why do I want to go backwards (downloadable movies) instead of forward (HD disc)?
Blu-Ray is the superior format, on paper. No doubt. However, there are a couple of wrenches in the works.
First, both formats are actually 90% the same. The physical storage medium is based on the same principles (blue laser) but different implementation (mostly depth of the reflective layer in the substrate). Blu-Ray is slightly denser and offers a higher total capacity (50GB vs 34GB, something like that). Blu-Ray is actually sort-of a superset of DVD from there, once you get to what's actually on the disc. HD-DVD has a new encryption layer (they learned from CSS), Blu-Ray uses this same scheme and then puts a 2nd layer of encryption on top of it. Both use the same codecs -- MPEG2, MPEG-4 H.262, and VC1 (Microsoft's codec), and Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Pure HD, DTS Plus, etc.
I believe movie studio support determines who wins. The studios were split 50-50 pretty much. Then, something funny happened. Some HD-DVD studios announced they would ALSO support Blu-Ray. In my mind, that meant Blu-Ray wins.
The launch came, HD-DVD came out first and Toshiba led the way with a pair of chunky, heavy, PC-based players at $500 and $1000. Everyone hated the Toshiba players, they were slow, unwieldy, and have awful remotes. A few months later Blu-Ray launched with Samsung's $1000 player, and surprisingly this player was AWFUL, and the picture quality looks worse over HDMI than component because they forgot to turn off some video filtering. Worse, the Blu-Ray transfers thus far have been very poor quality. This seems to be because Blu-Ray is leaning towards old MPEG-2 HD transfers, while HD-DVD has embraced VC1 (which is the best of the 3 video codecs for quality and size) and gotten new encodings with Microsoft's attention. Then, Toshiba started putting out firmware updates for their HD-DVD players and suddenly their players didn't suck so bad.
So here we are; the only Blu-Ray player on the market is a Samsung, Sony has no presence. We're one month away from the launch of the PS3 (which will play Blu-Ray) and the X-Box 360 HD-DVD drive.
Right now, HD-DVD has all the momentum. The Blu-Ray titles are low quality, they have no $500 player, and HD-DVD is building a head of steam.
I know I'm the minority around here when I say this, but I don't own an iPod. :eek: Yeah, it's true... I personally don't care for the MP3 format and the lesser quality offerings of iTunes. If it isn't at least CD quality, uncompressed, I don't want it. And yes, I can hear the difference on my sound system which is a separate setup from my home theatre.
:) I love iPods but I know I'm trading off quality for convenience. Meanwhile, I'm re-ripping all of my hundreds of CDs into Apple lossless format and putting the CDs in storage. It's not SACD, but at least I'll be back to CD quality.
icsedge1
Oct 10, 07:12 PM
nope, it just means they are iPods with video, as opposed to Video iPod. :rolleyes: it's got to be widescreen before i am going to watch tv on it.
Sedge
Sedge
Rt&Dzine
May 4, 03:27 PM
The hypocrisy from those of you on the left on this issue is pretty clear. If this was the GLBTA trying to pass a similar law regarding homosexuality, etc. you'd have no problem with it.
Because being a homosexual is just like owning a gun. They're both choices. :rolleyes:
Because being a homosexual is just like owning a gun. They're both choices. :rolleyes:
bpaluzzi
May 4, 10:22 AM
The first link seems to be saying 4% of doctors read their email on an ipad. Do you think that really matches up with what the advertisement says, is that ground breaking?
Are you talking about this link?
http://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/physician-mobile-use-grows-45-percent
If so, I'm not sure how you came up with your statement. It's not even a misreading / misunderstanding. Your statement is just plain wrong.
Are you talking about this link?
http://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/physician-mobile-use-grows-45-percent
If so, I'm not sure how you came up with your statement. It's not even a misreading / misunderstanding. Your statement is just plain wrong.
Russell L
Sep 27, 02:22 AM
For those of you running Aperture on a Mac Pro, did you notice the new RAM requirement on http://www.apple.com/aperture/specs/? It says "2GB of RAM required for Mac Pro." I've been running Aperture just fine on my new Mac Pro with the standard 1GB of RAM. Like many new Mac Pro owners, I've been holding off on upgrading the RAM until it gets a little cheaper. The 1.5 update installer better not refuse to install on my Mac because of insufficient RAM; I'll be pretty upset if it does. :(
Russell
Russell
flopticalcube
Apr 21, 12:24 PM
I now agree with skunk's assertion there is no room for apathy. After you vote you cannot retract it to a neutral or apathetic stance, you can only choose to move to the other side of the fence.
*LTD*
Apr 24, 03:14 PM
then why does Apple keep terminal which is nothing more than Apple version of command prompt.
I was referring to the poster's comment about a hypothetical MS transition to Unix, which won't happen any time soon for a lot of reasons.
The command line is quite useful, actually. There are some very handy Terminal commands out there.
Here's a fun one, which might already be familiar:
Type this into the Terminal window and hit return:
telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl
It's been a while, I'm not sure if they actually finished it.
I was referring to the poster's comment about a hypothetical MS transition to Unix, which won't happen any time soon for a lot of reasons.
The command line is quite useful, actually. There are some very handy Terminal commands out there.
Here's a fun one, which might already be familiar:
Type this into the Terminal window and hit return:
telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl
It's been a while, I'm not sure if they actually finished it.
Eduardo1971
Nov 24, 01:32 PM
could you link me on how to get the government discount? my dad works for the post office and that is federal government...could somoene tell me how to get this discount? thanks
They used to have a link, recently though I can't find it.:(
They used to have a link, recently though I can't find it.:(
lostontheisland
Apr 5, 04:56 PM
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better than being angry over someone elses opinion.
I'm not angry. There's a difference between being angry and having a civilized argument that DOESN'T involve name calling.
first-chill!, second-chill a little more, third-am i not within my own rights to call something as i see it?or is that reserved solely for you?the choice of words i use are just that my choice so take your opinion about me elsewhere as after some thought iv decided I couldn't care any less what you say.
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better than being angry over someone elses opinion.
I'm not angry. There's a difference between being angry and having a civilized argument that DOESN'T involve name calling.
first-chill!, second-chill a little more, third-am i not within my own rights to call something as i see it?or is that reserved solely for you?the choice of words i use are just that my choice so take your opinion about me elsewhere as after some thought iv decided I couldn't care any less what you say.
Hallivand
Apr 6, 04:49 AM
So an app advertises an app for advertising more apps.
Nice one Apple.
Nice one Apple.
SimonMW
Jan 15, 05:50 PM
still 700:1 contrast ratio
In the context that manufacturers state such figures, this is meaningless. All it really boils down to is how white their whites are so they can claim a high contrast ratio, even though in the real world it means sod all.
Now what would really get me interested is a flat screen that displays truly black blacks.
In the context that manufacturers state such figures, this is meaningless. All it really boils down to is how white their whites are so they can claim a high contrast ratio, even though in the real world it means sod all.
Now what would really get me interested is a flat screen that displays truly black blacks.
citizenzen
May 6, 10:08 AM
Go to a firing range and learn about guns, citizenzen- even if it scares and repulses you. Trust me, you'll be all the better for it, and you might learn something about yourself you never knew was there. After all, knowledge is power.
Here's a little knowledge. Try to empower yourself with it.
I've shot guns.
And yet ... somehow ... I'm not bewitched by the thrill of firearms.
I know. How is that even possible? :eek:
Here's a little knowledge. Try to empower yourself with it.
I've shot guns.
And yet ... somehow ... I'm not bewitched by the thrill of firearms.
I know. How is that even possible? :eek:
JGowan
Nov 16, 10:18 PM
I threw up in my mouth a little bit�...You can't TM that... I remember Jack saying that on Will&Grace like 3 seasons ago. :D
Ygn
Nov 8, 02:03 PM
I'm worried about getting banned for getting it (a few hours) early.
I was on multiplayer earlier, you'd be surprised at how many thousands of people are already on it, via pre-orders I assume and different timezones judging by the different accents people had.
I was on multiplayer earlier, you'd be surprised at how many thousands of people are already on it, via pre-orders I assume and different timezones judging by the different accents people had.
Buschmaster
Sep 12, 09:20 AM
Do you recall when iTunes launched the video store? The only TV shows were like 3-4 ABC shows + a few Disney Channel shows. I think you are underestimating the power of iTunes to drag studios along. Disney has a large library of titles, and not just Mickey Goes to Camp.
But it's going to be HARDWARE that looms large if a movie store can be sucessfull, then pricing, then content. No WS iPod, and I think the sucess rate goes down dramatically. The majority of people have no desire to watch movies on their computer unless maybe on a laptop if they are travelling.
Actually I believe it was 3... if my memory is holding true... it was...
The Office, Desperate Housewives, and Lost.
I remember it clearly because it was right next to when I got my new video iPod.... hmmmmmmm.....
But it's going to be HARDWARE that looms large if a movie store can be sucessfull, then pricing, then content. No WS iPod, and I think the sucess rate goes down dramatically. The majority of people have no desire to watch movies on their computer unless maybe on a laptop if they are travelling.
Actually I believe it was 3... if my memory is holding true... it was...
The Office, Desperate Housewives, and Lost.
I remember it clearly because it was right next to when I got my new video iPod.... hmmmmmmm.....
macman2790
Oct 3, 01:37 PM
This is my prediction as well. We'll see!
i've been pessimistic about the mbp update for a while now considering how long it would take for santa rosa if they released a new one now.
i've been pessimistic about the mbp update for a while now considering how long it would take for santa rosa if they released a new one now.
Unorthodox
Oct 28, 04:04 PM
"It's mine and you can't have it, with you I will not share it, cause if I share it with you, you'll have it to!"
Thats Apple's theme song.
Thats Apple's theme song.
v66jack
Apr 10, 05:21 PM
Meet my new desk mascot.
http://twitpic.com/show/thumb/4hmpd9.jpg
It even makes Angry Bird sounds!!!
http://twitpic.com/show/thumb/4hmpd9.jpg
It even makes Angry Bird sounds!!!
zooey91
Aug 9, 12:37 PM
OK, since the specs changed on the 23" but the model number stayed the same (M9178LL/A), how can I tell whether the monitor that I ordered from Apple is old stock or new?
Jim
Jim
a17inchFuture
Sep 12, 03:17 AM
no, I wouldn't prefer osx media player, i'm not saying that I would prefer anything different, imedia would make more sense, but there's no way apple would change the name of there most well known software.
Yeah, for the time being, I think iTunes is still safe. I can imagine some change at some point -- iLife was once just a bunch of individual applications, maybe they'll go a similar route, and start calling it the iMall or some **** (obviously not that), and just have the individual "stores" as subheadings the way the tv store is now.
Yeah, for the time being, I think iTunes is still safe. I can imagine some change at some point -- iLife was once just a bunch of individual applications, maybe they'll go a similar route, and start calling it the iMall or some **** (obviously not that), and just have the individual "stores" as subheadings the way the tv store is now.
Rocketman
Oct 29, 10:58 AM
We're talking about information here. It has no intrinsic value.
I do believe you are inherently wrong here.
Information is stored on artifacts (things). Therefore the combination of the artifact and its highly value added information has yet more "intrinsic" value.
What has more value in stopping cars, a red light or a blue light. They are both lights. They only emit different information.
Dictionary.com:
"Of or relating to the essential nature of a thing; inherent."
Rocketman
I do believe you are inherently wrong here.
Information is stored on artifacts (things). Therefore the combination of the artifact and its highly value added information has yet more "intrinsic" value.
What has more value in stopping cars, a red light or a blue light. They are both lights. They only emit different information.
Dictionary.com:
"Of or relating to the essential nature of a thing; inherent."
Rocketman
Digitalclips
Mar 24, 09:24 PM
I have every one of those boxes! :)
PsykX
Apr 5, 04:45 PM
Desperate is as desperate does...
No. The idea is very good in fact, it’s a pure showcase for companies that are interested in making iAds, but who are still reticent.
I’m really astounded by the quality of the comments in this thread, not just by yours.
Don’t tell me that you thought it was for the average end-user for real? :eek:
No. The idea is very good in fact, it’s a pure showcase for companies that are interested in making iAds, but who are still reticent.
I’m really astounded by the quality of the comments in this thread, not just by yours.
Don’t tell me that you thought it was for the average end-user for real? :eek:
Mitthrawnuruodo
Sep 12, 07:34 AM
Even the Norwegian iTunes store is down...
I didn't expect that, after the last couple of months controversies here... :confused:
I didn't expect that, after the last couple of months controversies here... :confused:
