This is an update to Want To Shoot Rich In The Face?

Quake Live is an FPS style game that’s completely in-browser, and that means it’s cross-browser/cross-platform compatible.

The plan here is to schedule an event to get a bunch of PCMech readers (yes, that means you’re invited) into the game to see if you guys and gals actually like it or not. Consider it a "mass review" to test out the game along with being able to play with an actual PCMech author, that being yours truly.

From the previous article, I’ve discovered a few things, with the biggest being that if you’re running things that block scripting and Flash such as NoScript or FlashBlock for Firefox, the game will not work. You will need to temporarily disable those for gameplay.

In addition there are several options you can set to make gameplay better per your computer’s specifications, such as adjusting texture detail, full-screen mode and so on. This is accessed in-game by pressing ESC on your keyboard and making the appropriate adjustments. The video below shows you how to do this, so be sure to watch it. Bear in mind you can go higher or lower, so even if you have an older computer, you can disable/downgrade enough stuff to make the game enjoyable and fluid on play.

Note on the video: My frame rate is crappy because my capture software isn’t designed to "grab" high-frame stuff like that. Believe me when I say the frame rate you’ll get will be a million times better and completely fluid.

This video makes note of my Quake Live ID:

http://www.quakelive.com/#profile/summary/frostedside

After logging in to Quake Live, you can add me in as a friend by going to the above link, or you can manually add by searching for the ID frostedside.

See video below for more details. There are also some scheduling notes below the video.

Scheduling notes

As for when I plan on getting everybody in on a game, it may happen this evening (as in today Wednesday November 18) during the PCMech LIVE broadcast from 8pm to 10pm EST.

I personally find it comical how many users of the YouTube site believe they have "rights" on a private system that doesn’t grant them any. I also find it comical many believe that they can simply dictate to Google what they should and shouldn’t do with their own video sharing web site that’s free.

A classic example of this is in this video. Of course, you’ve got the standard "YouTube is dead" message (geez, how many times have we heard that?), followed by a seriously lame cinematic-style soundtrack and stuffed with a lot of "GOOGLE, YOU MUST DO THIS AND THIS AND THAT" dictator-style crapola. Way to put on the spin there, guy. You should work for Fox News.

It is very well known that Google has been trying like crazy for the past several years to turn a profit out of the YouTube site because it’s been losing money from day one. Everybody knew more big names were coming. Everybody knew more ads were coming. Everybody knew video  advertisements were coming.

None of the upcoming changes for YouTube should be a surprise to anybody. And yet some are just "shocked" by it.

Be shocked  all you want. YouTube is a business, and Google is trying to make some money with the site. In its first few years online, YouTube was a free-for-all. Rules be damned. Law be damned. And Google literally paid the price for it by being sued left and right several times. Lessons were learned and now they follow the rules as they were ordered to.

Now comes the point where they’re making good with all the businesses that were previously enemies. They’re saying, "We follow the rules now. Let’s make a deal." Deals were made. And you’ll be seeing them soon.

To all fervent YouTube "community" users: Please stop whining just because Google is trying to turn a profit from something that’s been losing money hand over fist for years. And yes, you are whining. You don’t have to pay to use the site. And you could use another video sharing site if you wanted to. So shaddup.

Oh, and one final note: The video linked above mentions Firefox 3 because it’s not a Google product and that you should use it because of that. Answer this: Why do you think Google is the default search engine in the Firefox browser? I’ll tell you. It’s because Google is the single largest overall fiscal contributor to the Mozilla Foundation, the makers of Firefox. Looks like you’ll have to start using Opera or IE.

Flickr, the ever popular photo sharing service, has had video available for some time but only for Pro (i.e. paid) members. I’ve used it a few times and it’s pretty decent. Granted, they only allow 90-second videos, but for many people that’s just about right.

Recently it was announced that anyone – including the free members – can now upload videos too. The only hitch is that freebie members can’t upload HD. But considering most people don’t do HD video at present, that’s okay.

Being that I’ve actually tried Flickr’s video sharing option myself, this is what I can say about it:

First, the load time is almost always faster compared to other video sharing sites.

Second, the interface is a whole lot cleaner.

Third, the way in which Flickr encodes videos does put emphasis on quality before speed (I personally appreciate this), yet still loads quickly.

Fourth, the Flickr community is above and beyond better than YouTube’s ever could be. And yes, this matters. If you want to be in the company of people more on the adult side, Flickr definitely trounces YouTube in that respect.

Give Flickr video a try, you might like it.

The days of linear format camcorders are dying. Linear as it relates to camcorders is anything using slack that requires rewinding or fast-forwarding. And to be honest I’m not sorry to see them go. This is more or less the last in line of tech products to get "off the slack", so to speak.

There are many of you out there who still have MiniDV videocassette format camcorders. Since day one I have always hated MiniDV. It’s not the cassette itself I hate, it’s the fact the decks in camcorders that use them are notoriously unreliable. This is partly due because of the cookie-cutter style method of manufacturing that goes into these things (even the expensive ones).

For those that remember VHS camcorders, those things were built like tanks and lasted a good long time. You could pop in and out VHS tapes to your heart’s content and it wouldn’t bust.

MiniDV on the other hand is something you have to treat gingerly. It’s almost as if you have to say a little prayer each time you load in a cassette. "Oh please, don’t break on me. Pretty please. I treat you well. You know I do." Your prayers won’t matter because your MiniDV camcorder can and will break at the worst possible time and is very subject to Murphy’s Law.

Fortunately it’s relatively cheap to ditch the slack, say buh-bye to MiniDV and go with non-linear flash, optical or hard disk camcorders.

For the vast majority of you that do non-pro video recording, a Flip will work. I personally have one of these things. The fact I can get 60 minutes of very decent quality record time on a unit powered by two AA batteries is nothing short of miraculous. Granted, the zoom feature sucks and it can’t do close-ups very well, but the convenience more than makes up for it. And it even has a tripod mount. Currently they sell for just under $130. And yes, you should get one. By the way, the USB port on it is built in.

"But I need better quality", you say. Then go with optical (or more specifically, the 8cm DVD disc format). For under $300 you can get yourself quite a nice Canon.

"But I hate discs", you say. Then go with hard-disk based units. These aren’t cheap. The lowest price is just a tick under $350. From there they spike over $600 easily. Do they have the super-awesome quality you’re looking for? Absolutely. It is for all intents and purposes a pro-grade unit.

Ditch your MiniDV and step into the modern age. It’s time.

With Linux I’ve tried my share of video editors. And while what’s available isn’t as good as pro software titles for Windows or Mac, there’s still some decent offerings out there that will do the job. What’s most important now compared to just a few years ago are two things:

1. A lot of concentration is now placed on the GUI (which is mandatory with video editing).
2. There’s more than just 3 titles available that actually work.

TechCityInc has put together a list of 10 video editors, including the really good ones that support a variety of codecs (cool) and export options (very cool). In addition, all editors listed are free.

In my past experiences with editing video under Linux I didn’t get very far. I usually ran in to a codec problem and/or export problem and/or the app crashed, etc. But these days you can handle MPEG, MP4 and AVIs without a problem and that’s good. Video data largely uses proprietary formats, and with the software titles from the above link you can actually work with most of them to create your finalized videos.

The most important software listed on that link is Avidemux for the reason it’s available for Windows, Mac and Linux. This means you if have Windows or Mac PCs and Linux PCs you can trade video files and projects between OSes much more easily – and that’s important. Having cross-platform video editing software is definitely a huge perk.

Many people who publish videos on the internet (such as PCMech) does put an "intro" on the front to inform people who made it in the first place.

Over the course of my video-making I discovered that by and large, people hate intros if they:

1. Are too long.
2. Are too "spammy".
3. Have the word "productions" in it.
4. All of the above.

Too long

On some older PCMech videos, yes the intros are way too long. So I shortened it, then shortened it again. At present, it’s just barely 6 seconds long and that’s just about right. (I could go even shorter and might for future vids.)

If your intro is longer than 6 seconds, shorten it. Anything longer will annoy people.

Think of it this way: When you’re driving on the highway and see a speed limit sign, you have seen and processed the information in just a few seconds. Intros work the same way – all you need is a few seconds and nothing more.

Too "spammy"

This is where your intro is "pushing" something too much and looks like an ad. Intros are supposed to be informatory first and always and not spam.

Has the word "productions" in it

Instead of coming up with something original, people will use "First name, Last name Productions". Nobody cares. Get rid of it and use something else (preferably something a lot shorter).

Skip the intro altogether?

There’s a school of thought that states you should have no intro whatsoever, and instead put informatory stuff at the tail after the main video is over.

Does this work? For some it does. It depends on your content. If you have relative assurance that people are watching all the way thru, then yes you can ditch the intro altogether. If not, stick with the intro.

Do intros bother you?

Let us know in the comments.

While it’s true that other video-sharing sites (like Vimeo’s HD channel) have had large HD-quality video for a while now, YouTube has finally jumped into the fray with its own HD.

And to be honest it looks really good.

The only drawback is that it’s absolutely required that you have a reasonably fast PC with a decent video card, else you get dropped frames here and there.

An example of YouTube HD is here. Click the "watch in HD" link under the video.

One thing’s for certain – you absolutely cannot use a webcam to get this kind of quality; it more or less has to come from a camcorder or handheld USB video device that can do 16:9 aspect (which most do). The drawback with that is that while cool, the video takes much longer to upload and brings us back to a point where video is difficult to use once again. A webcam is easy, a camcorder is difficult. You have to transfer the video off the camcorder first, edit it, render it (which takes at least twice as long), upload a huge file, etc.

HD is cool but definitely not for everyone.

You may have a disc, be it music or data, that is scratched and will not read in your optical disc drive no matter what you do to it. Can it be saved?

Possibly. There are a few things you can try to save that disc.

Hardware method: It could be just the drive you’re using

If the disc won’t read in your optical drive, try another one that’s close by. If you don’t have one to spare, try a friend’s computer.

Interesting side note: Older optical drives with slower read speeds have a much higher chance of reading a maybe/maybe-not bad disc than newer drives do because they don’t spin up as fast. Being that laptop optical drives are typically slower, if you have a laptop with a CD/DVD drive, try that. You might be successful.

Software method: Using Nero Burning ROM to attempt a super-slow-read copy

Nero Burning ROM (paid application) has been around a long time and is arguably one of the best disc copying software utilities ever made – if not the best.

If the disc you have will spin up but will not read, Nero might be able to save it or at least at a good chunk of it.

When you copy a disc using Nero Burning ROM (part of the Nero 9 suite), it will first try to copy at the maximum speed possible. When it runs into a part of the disc it can’t read properly, Nero will purposely slow down the drive (all the way to 1x if necessary) and try every single possible way to read the data. If it can’t read the data, it will skip that part and go to the next readable portion and move on.

The disc copy make take a really long time – but you might be able to save whatever was on the disc or at least a good portion of it. If it’s just a portion, better to have something than nothing, right?

I have saved discs with Nero Burning ROM that no other app was able to copy, so I can attest that yes, it does work when all others fail. And if Nero fails.. well.. try washing the disc first (see below).

Physically doing something to the disc: Washing it first

CDs and DVDs are made of two things, aluminum and plastic. The outside shell is plastic, the shiny part is the aluminum. The part that is scratched is the plastic.

Plastic can be washed with just about anything, but the goal is to not scratch it any further.

Paper towels and non-scented ammonia-free glass cleaner (like Windex) do work. Why paper towels and not tissue paper? Because tissue paper is an abrasive and will scratch the plastic surface even worse.

Tip on cleaner used: Do not use anything labeled as a degreaser (like Formula 409). "Straight" glass cleaner is what you want.

Tip on paper towels used: Unscented, plain, no patterns such as Bounty or Brawn.

(Incidentally this is the same reason you never clean eyeglasses with tissue paper because it will scratch those up over time as well.)

Can you read a disc that is physically cracked?

Example: You leave a disc on the couch and forget about it. Later on you go to sit on the couch and watch TV, then…

CRACK!

Uh-oh. You sat on the disc. Very cracked but still together.

Is the disc still readable? Believe it or not, yes – or at least with CDs. A CD which has an "outside in" straight crack in it (from the outer edge to inner edge but not to the center) can be read as long as it’s even with the rest of the disc. However there is the possibility the disc might shatter when in the optical drive. Chances are this probably won’t happen – but it might.

DVDs when cracked usually cannot be read at all. If this happens to you, toss the disc out because there’s not anything you can do about that.

Tip to avoid this scenario: Don’t sit or step on discs (duh).

[Cracked CD photo by hermanturnip]

Pictured right, NVIDIA’s Quadro FX 5800, a video card that has more video RAM than most people have for system RAM.

Well I suppose if NVIDIA didn’t do it I’m sure someone else would have.

Did you just build the most awesomest superest kick-assing-est computer ever (most likely for gaming)? Well, guess what – it’s obsolete. Darn that modern technology.

Okay, in all seriousness, yes this card can be used (obviously) – but certainly not for gaming because what a waste that would be. If you want a real-world example of where this sucker can be put to good use, that would be medical imaging.

Oh, and if you want one, it’s $3,499.

And I swear, if I hear one gamer nerd say, "LOL HOW MANY FPS CAN I GET ON FULL SETTING CRYSIS WITH THAT?!" or anything to that effect, I will personally come to your house and kick you in the jewels.

[Source: ars technica]

Since the release of Mozilla Firefox 3 there have been issues with the Adobe Flash player (currently at release 9), particularly with Flash video. What happens is that you’ll attempt to watch a video (say on YouTube) and the first 2 seconds will play and then stop. And you’re left with no choice but to restart the browser and sometimes that doesn’t even work.

There is a Flash 10 beta available right now if you want to use it. It’s recently been updated for both Windows and Mac. Personally speaking I won’t be using it because all I have to do is that if Flash bugs up on me I just go into Internet Explorer 7 and everything is okey-dokey. I figure if I want to view a Flash video that bad, going to another browser just for that video doesn’t bother me.

So if you’re a Firefox user and have been experiencing that maddening 2-second-and-stop issue, it’s not your fault. When version 10 of the Adobe Player is officially released it should resolve that issue.

Google Chrome is a web browser very recently released by Google. While Dave concentrated more on the “guts” of the browser, I concentrated more on its usability. What I discovered is that while Gmail and Yahoo! Mail work, the full version of Hotmail does not. The bookmark import from Firefox on initial install didn’t work. There’s also some Java stuff that doesn’t work and the zoom feature isn’t too great either (compared to IE or Firefox). However I will say that yes, it’s really fast, zippy and easy to use. See video below for details.

A freeware utility called Rename Master is all you need to mass-rename any type of file you want to in Windows XP or Vista. While it’s true you can mass-rename file extensions from the command line in Windows, it’s not so easy to touch a specific part of a filename. But with Rename Master you can do this easily. See video below for details.

When the first consumer-grade portable video recording systems were introduced they were humongous and had extremely poor battery life. In addition to that they were heavy and gave you "camcorder shoulder" in short order.

As camcorders progressed in technology they started to become smaller but suffered from the same fate as their predecessors – they were stuck using linear recording mediums (VHS, Hi8, VHS-C, miniDV, etc.)

Further down the line, optical media was introduced in the form of direct-to-disc DVD both full-sized and 8cm-size.

For professional videographers, you still can’t escape tape. Not cost effectively anyway.

For everyone else, you can ditch your tapes and discs now by using a camcorder with built-in flash memory. No tapes. No discs.

Most people have seen the Pure Digital Flip camcorder. I have used one of these myself and can honestly say that yes, you will instantly love this thing compared to a traditional tape or optical media camcorder. First of all, it’s cheap (just over 100 bucks). Second, it’s stupidly easy to use. There is zero learning curve with one of these things. Third, everyone has USB and fourth (the best part), it runs on just 2 AA batteries. No need to hunt around for expensive proprietary camcorder battery nonsense.

For those interested it records up to 1 hour of video and yes it does have a zoom feature.

I know what you’re saying.

"I want HD in the palm of my hand!"

Ask and ye shall receive:

Above is the Sony Xacti HDTV tapeless camcorder. And yes it’s true-blue HD. The cost of this unit was last known to be $468. Yes, it’s a good coin for this but it is HD in the palm of your hand. Rock on, flash memory.

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Please Login or Register to read the rest of this article. Gold/Silver Membership required.

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