2008 March | official tech blog

Mar 29 2008

HP Media Vault 2100 Linux Server Reviewed: One Kick-Ass Tiny Penguin [Review]

Posted by: admin in General Tech News

Why, in the midst of a major Windows Home Server push, would HP introduce a little Linux-based NAS at half the price? And why would HP make the $300 Media Vault mv2120 so full featured and easy that its $600-and-up MediaSmart Servers look
A) too bulky
B) too high-priced
C) too overloaded
D) all of the above?
Is HP telling Microsoft there’s no need for Windows Home Server, especially in light of its current troubles? Or is HP saying that WHS is nice, but it’d be nicer if it was actually priced as an accessory? Whether the new Media Vault is a lurch away from Microsoft’s gravitational pull, or whether it’s a placeholder until Redmond can come up with a formula for $300 WHS boxes, it’s a pretty cool tiny machine.

See, one of the reasons I liked Windows Home Server so much is that after dealing with many NAS products from the storage companies and networking hardware makers, the MediaSmart server was easier to setup and had a lot of useful apps ready to go at the start. Maybe you like a clean drive, an empty warehouse on your network, but it’s nice when some of the initiative is taken for you.

That’s why I was relieved (though a bit startled) that the 500GB Media Vault—again half the price of the 500GB MediaSmart Server—was ready to do so much right out of the box.

I plugged it in, ran the Windows-only set up, and was immediately able to back stuff up, either using the super-simple screen for music, movies, etc., or the more comprehensive tool, where you can tell it what you want to back up and when you want it done.I did it on both Vista and XP machines, and was happy to be able to check out my contents afterwards on the PCs and even on my Mac. (WHS only lets you see your backups via a tedious drive emulator, one that obviously doesn’t run on Macs.)Although the $299 version comes with just one fixed 500GB drive, it also has a bay so you can add another 3.5″ SATA drive. I powered down the unit, dropped in a 500GB on that I had lying around, and fired it up again. The LED went purple to show that it saw the drive but needed a format. I went to the Media Vault control center, picked the drive, formatted it (as a RAID 1 mirror of the first drive) and voila, in minutes, we were set and, on the unit itself, Drive 2’s LED had turned blue.I haven’t done any HD video streaming or anything like that yet, but with a gigabit ethernet connection, I don’t think I’ll have a problem. In fact, though HP states that the Media Vault can’t do multiple simultaneous video streams like the WHS, I can’t really figure out what I, personally, would miss if I kissed the WHS goodbye and stuck with the Media Vault. Here’s how the comparison plays out:

What’s not as good as MediaSmart Windows Home Server:
• Won’t do multiple streams of video like WHS
• Only two drive bays (a fixed and a spare) instead of four
• Lets you backup multiple Computers, but only one at at time from the PC itself, not through a WHS-style master control

What’s the same as MediaSmart Windows Home Server:
• iTunes music aggregation
&bull Pic webshare
• Remote access and web-based file browsing (1-year free)
• Connect via Mac for basic use as a shared drive

What’s better than MediaSmart Windows Home Server:
• Web-based remote controls work great on Macs
• Quieter, with less drive noise on a regular basis
• Easy to back-up the server itself to a USB drive
• Easier to access Windows backups, especially from a Mac
• Probably does not share the same data corruption bug as WHS

In the end, this product isn’t just another NAS, but a bold statement that HP is making, that it doesn’t have to be saddled by the rough riders of Redmond when it can build (license?) its own practically identical box at a lower cost. Now I know that there are some things that you can only do with a PC-like server running a full OS, but honestly, what are they? I mean, do most people, even die-hard server-needers, give a crap? I want to know from you folks: Why bother with Windows Home Server when the Linux-based alternatives are on the surface equally friendly, equally powerful and—oh yeah—half the cost? [HP]

Mar 29 2008

Blue sunglasses will make your food look gross, and they’re supposed to

Posted by: admin in Tech And Life

In Japan, people are fat because the food looks too good. Or so the reasoning goes behind these blue-tinted shades which, according to the company that makes them, will make food look so unappetizing you won’t want to eat it. This is total bullshit. The theory is that the red wavelengths in food make you want to […]

In Japan, people are fat because the food looks too good. Or so the reasoning goes behind these blue-tinted shades which, according to the company that makes them, will make food look so unappetizing you won’t want to eat it.

This is total bullshit.

The theory is that the red wavelengths in food make you want to eat it. Not true. I know this because I’m colorblind and eat the hell out of a pizza. And a sandwich. And pasta. And chickenwings.

Don’t fall for this gimmicky crap.

Mar 29 2008

Man Uses Gun to Blow Hole in Wall for Satellite Dish, Kills Wife by Accident [Oo

Posted by: admin in General Tech News

This is what tools are for, my friends. Ronald Long of Deepwater, MO, was trying to install a satellite dish in his bedroom. He was having trouble putting the necessary hole in the wall and, thinking himself quite clever, decided to use his gun to get the job done quickly. Unfortunately, his wife was outside and caught the bullet in the chest. She was rushed to the hospital but was declared dead on arrival. On the upside, Ronald now has DirecTV. Silver linings, people. [KCTV via Boing Boing]

Mar 29 2008

Latest iPhone 2.0 Firmware Unlocked Again in 24 Hours [Breaking]

Posted by: admin in General Tech News

The image associated with this post is ideal viewed using a browser.Not even 24 hours after the release of the latest update for the iPhone firmware 1.2.0 (or 2.0, as The Steve calls it,) the iPhone Dev Team sent us this picture showing that they’ve again pwned it, getting the updated iPhone to run all applications totally unlocked, and demonstrating what they already told Gizmodo: “Apple won’t really be able to patch it this time.” Check the new Contacts application, which gives a direct access to the Address Book database. More photos after the jump.

[Hackint0sh]

Mar 29 2008

Dealzmodo: $0.99 Bluetooth Headset [Deals]

Posted by: admin in General Tech News

We know a bunch of you would never use a Bluetooth headset even if your hands were broken and it was the only way you could make a call. Problem is, a bunch of says are enacting handset-only call laws, meaning that you’re going to have to get one whether you want to or not. Here’s a Soyo FreeStyler 500 Bluetooth headset for $0.99 with $10 Google Checkout discount. Buy it and shove it into your glove compartment. [Buy.com via Gearlog]

Mar 28 2008

Shuttle now offering small form-factor quad-core Computers

Posted by: admin in Tech And Life

I’m not much of a desktop personal user. I do my best work at a coffeeshop, bar, or in bed, so my laptop is always the way to go. When I do noodle with desktops, I always try to make them as stylish and small as possible. Shuttle’s my go-to company for small desktops, and […]

I’m not much of a desktop computer user. I do my best work at a coffeeshop, bar, or in bed, so my laptop is always the way to go. When I do noodle with desktops, I always try to make them as stylish and small as possible. Shuttle’s my go-to company for small desktops, and its latest little offering includes quad-core procs, something you normally only get with larger, louder machines.

The G5 3300 G is a great example, and you can get a quad-core system that fits on a bookshelf for less than $1,300. Sweet.

Mar 28 2008

Electronic sheet music turning stand

Posted by: admin in Tech And Life

This device does (well, conceptually) one thing: electronically turn sheet music. You simply tap the little foot pedal when you’re ready for the next page and that’s that. Never having played an instrument, save for strumming along to a couple of Sleater-Kinney songs in the halcyon days of my youth, I don’t personally know how annoying […]

This device does (well, conceptually) one thing: electronically turn sheet music. You simply tap the little foot pedal when you’re ready for the next page and that’s that.

Never having played an instrument, save for strumming along to a couple of Sleater-Kinney songs in the halcyon days of my youth, I don’t personally know how annoying it is to have to quickly turn the page as you’re playing scales or whatever.

And might I add, vertically aligned images have no place on the World wide web. How awkward does that picture look? Any bigger and it’s do a number on your vertical scroll bar.

Mar 28 2008

Jacket Powers Gadgets With Your Hot Body [Gadgets]

Posted by: admin in General Tech News

You know how in the Matrix humans were grown in farms to harvest bodies to power machines? The kids at Berkeley Lab (Giz trivia: Chen’s a Berkeley grad) are making a jacket that does the same thing, but it powers gadgets like laptops and cellphones instead of futile resistance to Keanu Reeves. Basically they’re going to interlace thermo-electric silicon nanowires with the fabric, and they’ll transform excess hotness into energy. Send these to Adam Frucci, and our energy problems are over. [Rich Media Info via New Launches]