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Filed under: Video

Filed under: Internet, Video, News, Windows, Macintosh, P2P, Social Software, Web

Share unlimited media files for free with Libox

Libox got my attention with free and unlimited - as in unlimited - media sharing. It's a new beta desktop application that allows you to share all your photos, videos and music with your friends and contacts. Unlike other social media sharing sites, whose free accounts are 1 GB or 100 photos/files, Libox is unlimited.

A colleague and I gave the app a trial run today and we liked it. After downloading and installing (7.9 MB Mac and Windows) the beta, Libox prompts you to import your files from your computer. The UI is clean, minimalist and intuitive. After importing your media files from your computer, you can share them by email with your friends and groups. Your friends will also have to install the app to open the files you send.

Libox allows you to sync your media files with all the computers in your house. There is also a web app where you can access your media in your browser, however, it is in alpha and can only be used on your local computer and if it is not behind a firewall.

To accomplish all this, Libox uses a combination of P2P networking, cloud and grid computing. It does not store your media or metadata on their servers and when you share media with your friends, Libox creates a "private secure network" on those specific files with those specific friends. The files are received in their original format, no compression, resizing or degradation.

Many questions abound, like how will this service make money? Once out of beta, will it be a paid service? What about the private secure networks? How private and how secure? The web access in alpha - how will that work? What are the compatible file formats? Any plans to add other file types like EPS or Docs? Does Libox work with Linux? Tell us more about the company and mission. Is their plan complete world domination? Is Libox too good to be true?

Stay tuned. Hopefully, we'll get these answers and more if you leave your questions in the comments.

Filed under: Audio, Video, Web services

TubeRadio.fm turns YouTube into a powerful music player

Using YouTube to listen to music is nothing new. Search for a song you want to hear, and you're very likely to find it, even if there's no official music video. YouTube isn't built to listen to music though, and that's where TubeRadio.fm comes in. It's a slick music player that lets you create playlists from YouTube, and can even find entire albums at once, using track listings and album art from Last.fm. The TubeRadio homepage describes the service as "iTunes meets YouTube meets Spotify," and that's not much of exaggeration.

TubeRadio.fm puts more emphasis on the "radio" than the "tube": the videos themselves take up very little space in the UI. More space is devoted to the tabbed info box at the bottom of the screen, which automatically pulls up lyrics and artist bios. TubeRadio does a good job of getting the album versions of songs when you use 'Discography Mode' to grab whole albums, but occasionally it will find a live version instead. Fortunately, there's another mode that searches all of YouTube, and you can manually add the version you want, if it exists.

Filed under: Photo, Video, Web services, Microblogging

Yfrog now supports photo and video tweets from your webcam

Yfrog, one of the most popular photo-posting services for Twitter, is making a move into video and offering webcam support. You can record and tweet, right from the Yfrog site. To get started, check the space where you'd normally see the option to upload an image or enter a URL: the new webcam option has been added right next to those. When the video window pops up, you can record a video, take a still shot, or take a still shot on a 5 second delay.

As always with Yfrog, the photos and videos you take are only a click away from being posted to Twitter. Because Yfrog is already one of the top players in the Twitter photo uploading game, and supported in several major Twitter apps, there's a good chance it could start to dominate the Twitter video arena, too. Currently, Twitvid and Twiddeo are two of the most popular options.

[via CNET]

Filed under: Games, Video, Features, Microsoft

Windows 7 and DirectX 11 - not just good news for gamers!



Let me begin with some common knowledge to put us on some common ground. Vista sucks. By association, DirectX10 sucks. In fact, you might not even know what DirectX is -- and you would be forgiven!

DirectX is the piece of software that sits between your computer, and your video games. If you don't play games, you won't have heard of it. When you play a game on your PC it goes through DirectX. And until now, that's all DirectX did.

It's true: DirectX 10 premiered some nice new technologies. But because they were only available on Vista, which as we all know sucked more than a Hoover with a fresh, high-suction bag, DirectX 11 will be the first time most of us get to experience these new, funky technologies.

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Filed under: Video

Netflix to introduce streaming-only service -- but not in the US

Netflix have announced their intention to launch a streaming-only video option beginning in the second half of 2010. Currently the only way to stream Netflix movies is to sign up for the DVD-rental-by-mail service. But the new web-only option will only be available outside the US.

Why make a streaming service Netflix' first offering outside the US? 'Tricky' postal systems, says CEO Reed Hastings.

Now, this is a bit of an odd one. Most western nations already have DVD-by-mail systems that work just as well as (or better) than Netflix. So I don't think 'tricky' postal systems are the real reason behind this move. What then do Netflix intend to achieve by focusing on streaming content outside of the US? Is it just a matter of flexibility? More subscription options?

But again, why outside the US? Netflix's brand recognition outside the US is not great.

Hastings and Netflix claim there is still seemingly enough demand for such a service, with 42% of their subscribers watching at least "15 minutes of one TV show or movie in the last quarter." Readwriteweb point to the growing adoption of Hulu and BBC's iPlayer for TV, Pandora and Spotify for music -- but I don't think it's quite the same thing for movies.

People like using their big, wide-screen televisions. They like using their expensive sound set-ups. Set-top boxes that stream content from the Web are still relatively hard to come by and not readily adopted by consumers. Then there's the matter of bandwidth: streaming a movie in high-resolution with a surround-sound audio track is still way beyond the capacity of most American and European Internet connections.

Netflix haven't yet announced which country will get to trial their streaming-movie service, but it'll be interesting to see which one they choose -- and if it will indeed be successful.

[via Readwriteweb]

Filed under: Internet, Video, Web

Hulu to begin charging for (some) content next year?

Hulu
Hulu is quite simply one of the best ways to watch TV on the internet. In fact, in some ways, Hulu offers a better viewing experience than old fashioned TV. For example, you tend to have just 2-3 minutes of commercials to put up with when watching a one hour (or rather, 42 minute) program on Hulu, instead of 18 minutes of advertisements.

But partly for that reason, FOX, NBC, ABC, and the other content networks that are supplying Hulu with a steady stream of TV shows and movies aren't making as much money from the site as they do when that content is viewed on TV. And according to FOX News Corp deputy chairman Chase Carey, one way to address that issue is to start charging for Hulu content. '

Now, before you freak out, it's not entirely clear at the moment exactly what content would be moved behind a paid firewall. It's unlikely that Hulu would require users to pay to watch everything on the site. But it is possible that some exclusive content could be available only to paying subscribers or one-time viewers.

Of course, it's possible that the forces behind Hulu could go all out and treat itself like a cable network, requiring users to pay to view anything on the site -- at which point Hulu's audience would sharply decline while internet piracy would shoot up.

What do you think? Is there some content you would pay to see on Hulu? Or are you already paying for that content from iTunes, Amazon, or other internet video distributors?

[via TV Squad]

Filed under: Video, Windows, Microsoft

Want to learn about Windows 7? Microsoft offers you a look at its features

While much of the Download Squad audience is already well-educated about Windows 7, there are still many of you who might not know what all the fuss is about. Over the next week or two, you're going to be seeing and hearing a lot about Microsoft's new operating system, so our team is going to help bring you up to speed.

So what's all the fuss about? All the badmouthing aimed at Windows Vista made plenty of consumers stay away last time. Don't think Microsoft is unaware of that fact. They know, and they worked pretty hard to make sure that Windows 7 was "Vista done right."

What's different about Windows 7 - and what makes it better? Who better to answer those questions than Microsoft?

Read more →

Filed under: Internet, Video, Web

IMDb celebrates its 19th birthday

IMDb 19The Internet Movie Database turned 19 yesterday. If you're scratching your head wondering how the IMDb can be older than the web, you'll notice that the first initial is I, not W. That's because the iconic destination for information about films and TV shows actually predates the web.

In fact, the earliest version of the technology behind the IMDb was a set of scripts for searching the USENET group rec.arts.movies. The IMDb wasn't even named yet, but it was already a work in progress on October 17, 1990.

The web site today is a bit more full featured. Not only can you get biographies for actors, directors, writers, and producers, as well as biographies, filmographies, and brief descriptions of movies, but you can also get TV listings, movie rankings, entertainment news, message boards, and the ability to watch some movies and TV shows from the site.

[via TechCrunch]

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Video, News, Social Software, Web

David Lynch's Interview Project blog launches Oct. 20

Interview Project by David Lynch is an online series of interviews with Americans from different walks of life, in various towns and cities all over America. Beginning October 20, the project will launch a community blog, incorporating Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, so fans will be able to upload their own original content.

Austin Lynch (David's son) and a friend set out on a roadtrip across America and back to get the people's story from everyday Americans. They covered 20,000 miles in 70 days and got stories that are notable for the fact they are real, organic and unrehearsed. Production wise, they have the unmistakable Lynch feel, you keep looking for something that may be hidden. I watched 4 of the interviews and enjoyed spotting the Lynch symbols - close ups of flowers, bird chirps, etc. It will be fun to get to see how the conversations flow once the blog opens up a richer dialogue.

The blog launch will coincide with the premiere of the Clinton interview, a Fayetteville, WV man who finds salvation through a Stevie Nicks concert. For laughs, check out Lynch below NSFW (language) talking about watching movies on iPhones.

To him, it just ain't the real thing.

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Filed under: Video, Beta

UI Nerdgasm Alert: 10/GUI is sweeping us off our fingers

10/GUI from C. Miller on Vimeo.


Kitschy soundtrack, good voiceover and an intensely thorough demo add up to one cool re-imagining of our conventional human/computer interaction. In other words: this looks as close to the UI in Minority Report as I've ever seen. The key seems to be rewarding the user for having 10 fingers, and using all 10 to do a high number of operations in clever ways. This is really, really clever, too, just check out the name: 10/GUI. Check it out, you won't be disappointed. Well, if you hate using your fingers you might.

Filed under: Video, Hardware, Mobile Minute, iPhone

Mobile Minute: DIY cradle from cardboard coffee sleeve

DIY Mobile Device StandIt's amazing how expensive cradles are for mobile devices. Most users realize that there is a big premium being charged for what amounts to a formed piece of plastic, and it makes them less likely to pony up the big bucks for a device that holds their phone. Luckily, this is an area where a little DIY creativity can help.

A Download Squad tipster pointed us to their YouTube video describing how to take a cardboard coffee cup sleeve and with a few careful cuts, turn it into a perfectly serviceable cradle for holding a mobile device in landscape orientation. The video could have been shorter, but it is very well put together. I've embedded the video after the jump at the end of this post.

Alternatively, there is an iPhone dock papercraft project that Lifehacker pointed to that is a little more complicated, but results in a cradle that can hold an iPhone in landscape or portrait orientation, and allows you to plug in your iPhone's sync cable while in portrait orientation.

Is it worth skimping on a cradle and trying to make it yourself, or are you willing to pay the premium that hardware makers charge for their sturdier versions? Do you know of a different set of DIY cradle plans? Let us know in the comments.

Read more →

Filed under: Video, Microblogging

Twitter working on live video tweets?

According to an unsourced story from the Telegraph, Twitter's founders have been throwing around the idea of bringing live video posts to the site. The post describes mobile video uploads posted directly to users' profiles, as opposed to posting links to short videos, a la Tweetube or Twiddeo, but there's not much more to the story. If the rumors are true, it's going to bring some speculation about whether this is the best use of Twitter's resources.

Twitter still has spam problems to deal with, as well as at least three other major new features that are rolling out right now: geolocation, user lists and a new format for retweets. Without more details, we don't know where the storage space and bandwidth are going to come from: will video be a drain on the Twitter experience? Now that the service is pushing between 10,000 and 25,000 tweets a minute, there's a lot to consider when building out new features.

So, Download Squad readers, would you use a Twitter video service? Let us know in the comments and the poll below.

UPDATE: Looks like the folks at Mashable got a quote from Twitter founder Biz Stone, denying any plans for video features: "Haven't read the piece but no video hosting. 140 characters of text including spaces. You know the drill!"

Would you use a Twitter video feature?

Filed under: Internet, Video, Web services, Social Software, Web

Movie recommendation service Jinni launches public beta

Jinni
Jinni is a movie recommendation engine that helps you find films based on a number of factors. You can sort by genre, plot, mood, time/period, target audience or other factors. Probably the coolest feature is the "more like it" function which helps you find movies that you'd probably like based on the movie you're currently looking at. It's kind of like Netflix recommendations without that whole Netflix movie rental part.

Last time we checked out Jinni, the service was still in private beta. The Jinni team recently removed the "private" portion and launched a public beta. That means anyone can use Jinni without registering or signing in. Registered users do get a couple of perks like he ability to add titles to your favorites or wish list, create profiles, and connect with other users. You can also view your "movie personality" based on your preferences.

Users can also share their Jinni actions on Facebook and Twitter. Jinni isn't an online video site that lets you watch videos. Rather, once you find titles you like, Jinni directs you to sources where you can purchase or view the films including Netflix, Amazon, and Jaman.

Filed under: Video, Web services

Vimeo announces a Desktop Uploader and improved stats

Video sharing site Vimeo has just announced some major improvements, including a Desktop Uploader and new, more detailed statistics pages. The desktop app will offer a lot of features that Vimeo's web interface doesn't, like uploading multiple videos at once, and pausing/resuming your uploads. Vimeo hopes the Desktop Uploader will also increase stability and avoid timeouts on large uploads. The app will be cross-platform, built on Adobe Air, and should hit public beta soon.

The new stats pages will roll out by the end of the year, offering advanced data on all your videos, both individually and in the aggregate. You'll be able to see who's playing your videos, where your traffic is coming from (both in terms of referrers and geo stats) and whether people are watching in HD or SD. Many of these stats features will be for Plus users only, but Basic members will get a new stats view too.

Filed under: Video

BBC working on global video-on-demand software

BBC iPlayer
The BBC iPlayer allows UK residents to watch a wide variety of BBC programming including news and entertainment programs. The service is available in the UK at no additional cost, because UK residents basically pay an annual license fee to support the BBC. And that's why the iPlayer isn't available to viewers outside of the UK: No matter how much we want to watch the latest Doctor Who episodes online, we haven't paid for that right.

But it looks like we may soon have the option of paying to access an iPlayer-like service. PaidContent reports that BBC Worldwide plans to launch a global video portal. It's not entirely clear to me from the article whether users would be expected to pay for each video they want to watch or whether you'll be able to pay a monthly or annual fee to access the content. But I'm a bit concerned about one quote from a BBC official stating that Torchwood fans might be willing to pay $10 per episode rather than the $2 per episode you'd pay to watch the same show from iTunes.

What do you think? Would you pay $10 to watch a single episode of Doctor Who or Torchwood, or at that rate would you just sign up for a cable or satellite provider that carries BBC America? Or you know, resort to other, shadier means to get your fill of BBC Science Fiction programming.

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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