I Hate Plex So Much

I have been hobbling along with Plex for nearly two years now.

I have re-named all my files by their facist naming system (since Plex ignores the title information and anything else from file details) and placed each and every file in directories exactly as Plex has instructed.

As an early adopter, I paid hard-earned money for their Roku app (which should provide an elevated level of functionality… it does not).

I have spent hours looking through forums and trying to find information on their official website.

Still my files are constantly renamed (almost always incorrectly) and almost NO FILE has a thumbnail that corresponds to the actual film or television program it represents.  Even when I manually add names and poster files via the computer desktop interface, Plex will inevetiably switch the name back to whatever it wants, even when I use Plex’s “lock” funtion (this is particularly frustrating with episodic television).  Not only does Plex rename the titles, but it also removes the artwork I have assigned to replace the thumbnail with an image of Kevin Spacey from House of Cards.  I love Kevin Spacey, but I am so sick of seeing his #*&$% face on EVERY THUMBNAIL IN MY LIBRARY.

Furthermore, when I search (FF/RW) the “preview” always shows scenes from The Long Goodbye.  No matter the show I am watching, FF/RW will only show Elliot Gould, never the characters from the program I am searching through.  Thus, I have to guess how far forward or back I have gone.

I have dumped caches, refreshed databases, optimized databases, on and on and on… all to no avail.

The Plex interface in Roku is abysmal, especially since all the thumbnails are wrong.  I can’t search visually (since every thumbnail is the same still from House of Cards), so I have to highlight each and every file to see what the program actually is.  Not only that, but whoever created the Plex navigation for the Roku interface should be dragged into the street and beaten.  It is the most convoluted and unuseable maze of nonsense I have ever encountered.  I have no idea what they were thinking when they were creating the “quick access” sections, as each offering is completely useless when I’m trying to find the content I want to watch.

I am at witt’s end. I absolutely HATE Plex, but there seems to be NO OTHER choice for viewing my NAS stored media via Roku (which is what all the tv’s in our house use to access streaming media).

I could switch to XBMC and mirror to Roku, but I don’t want to have to access media via a computer (I want to use just Roku and NAS).

Why in the world is Plex the only game in town?!

…

Autopopulate Fields With KeePass

I have been happily using KeePass to safegaurd my passwords for years.

My one gripe has always been that to use my username and pass, I have to open the database, find the entry I want to use, then either right-click “perform auto type” or copy and paste the username and password.

Today I found out I’ve been doing it wrong. :-\

There is actually a keyboard shortcut/hotkey that will allow you to simply click on the username field and then KeePass will recognize the site’s address and autopopulate the necessary fields.

Once you’ve clicked inside the username field, simply click ctrl-alt-a.

It doesn’t always work, but it’s worked every time I’ve tried it so far.  This is a MAJOR time saver (you don’t have to open KeePass, find the entry, and populate the fields).

You can also alter the hotkey combo by going to Tools>Options>Advanced, and then in the lower right corner there is a button marked “Auto-Type” where you can change various settings for this hotkey combo.

…

Clearing the Android Clipboard on Samsung GS5 Running Lollipop

Clear clipboard… get it? HA!

Since I started using crazy long, unmemorable passwords for just about everything, I started using KeePass on my Galaxy S5.  The problem is, when you copy a password to the clipboard to fill in a password field, Android holds that password in the clipboard. Even worse, the clipboard actually holds multiple items!  This means simply hitting “paste” will populate any field with the password you are trying to keep secret.  It also means those copied passwords (multiple passwords) are being stored on your Android clipboard.

KeePass has a setting that allows you to set the time that Android should keep the password on the clipboard (settings: “Clipboard Timeout” with options 30 seconds, 1 minute, 5 minutes, and never), but the setting doesn’t seem to do anything (it simply doesn’t work).  My GS5 running Lollipop will keep a password on the clipboard indefinitely, even though I have “1 minute” selected in the KeePass settings (and have tried all the other options as well).

Supposedly Lollipop has implemented new API functionality that allows programs to copy/paste a password without using the clipboard.  I learned this from a post about 1Password which stated:

In Lollipop, 1Password can fill your information directly, without using the clipboard. Therefore, it isn’t possible for a third party to obtain your passwords by snooping on what 1Password’s doing.

The problem is, KeePass doesn’t seem to have implemented this “cool feature” yet, and my password is left hanging on the clipboard (to be accessed by malware, a user, or a clipboard manager).

In researching this issue, most posts on the topic say that you can simply long press in a text field to access the options “paste” and “clipboard” (or something similar), but on my device, this is not the case.  When I long press in a text field, I only get the “paste” option (thus, no option to clear my clipboard).

Other posts state that you can access the clipboard via an icon on your keyboard, however, the Google Keyboard has no such icon or accessibility (there is no button that gets you from the Google Keyboard to the clipboard).

If I switch to the Samsung Keyboard (which I hate), I can long press the second button to the left of the space bar (which can be assigned several different options), and one of the options is an icon of a clipboard.  Pressing this button does in fact gain me access to the clipboard (and quite a long and disturbing list of things stored there, including 10 or so passwords!).  WTF?!

So… I guess the problem is that the Google Keyboard ignores clipboard access functionality.  In order to access (and clear) your clipboard, you need to use a NON-Google keyboard, or a clipboard management app.

Obviously the best solution would be if KeePass just started using the Lollipop API that allowed for “non-clipboard” copied password storage… not to mention actually clearing the copied password after a certain amount of time like it’s supposed to.

…

DSLR Controller App Review

My favorite app on my LG Gpad 8.3 tablet is almost certainly DSLR Controller by Chainfire.

By simply attaching my tablet to my camera via USB I am able to see what my camera is seeing at high resolution on an 8.3 inch screen.  Thus my tablet is turned into a hi-rez field monitor (and my tablet was FREE!).  Not only that, but I am also able to control MANY of the functions of the camera via my tablet’s touchscreen.  In order to make this happen, your device needs to support OTG, and you’ll need an “On the Go” cable (an OTG Cable).  I purchased this two pack for $7 from Cable Matters on Amazon.

Here’s the list of functions from the app’s Google Play page:

• Live View
• Auto Focus (tap Live View)
• Manual focus adjustments (in AF mode)
• Histogram
• Zoom control
• Grid and aspect ratio overlay
• Bulb capture
• Continuous capture
• Image review (+ follow shot, gallery)
• Image filters (peaking, contrast, channel mask, grayscale, 4 modes/filter)
• Video recording
• HDR/Auto Exposure Bracketing
• Focus Bracketing (incl. HDR)
• Focus A-B
• Mirror Lockup support
• Timelapse (incl. HDR)
• Wi-Fi Passthrough
• Extensive modification of settings
• Shutter speed
• Aperture
• ExpComp and Bracket
• ISO speed
• Auto-Focus Mode
• Focus and Zoom area (tap-and-hold Live View)
• Picture Style
• Drive Mode
• White Balance
• Color Temperature
• Auto-Lighting Optimizer
• Metering Mode
• Image and video quality and format

That’s some crazy functionality from an app.  Much like Magic Lantern, Chainfire has harnessed the potential of the Canon DSLR (more specifically, the USB port) in a much more robust and useful capacity than Canon’s own USB connected software (which does little more than trip the shutter).

Even though the app has the ability to transfer photos from the camera to your device, I don’t anticipate using that functionality very often.  It’s nice to be able to use the app to move or back up pics from the camera to your tablet, but it’s pretty slow, and not very realistic to wait for the transfer to happen while you’re actively using the camera/tablet.  It’s something that you could do when you’re done, but I don’t think it’s fast enough to use on the fly.

There are several other apps that address similar functionality via the USB port of your tablet and OTG, but I don’t think any do it as well as DSLR Controller.  Not only that, but at $8 it is absolutely the most affordable solution with features this robust.  The closest competitor, Helicon Remote, offers a “free/lite” version, but it only works with low rez JPEGs (definitely not RAW), and when it comes time to purchase the full app they want FIFTY BUCKS!!!

It’s kind of annoying that DSLR Controller is still listed as “BETA” (it’s been listed that way for more than a year), but I guess it’s just Chainfire’s way of covering their asses if something goes wrong (similarly, Magic Lantern makes it VERY clear that they aren’t responsible if something goes wrong when you’re using their software).

In addition to the spectacular functionality of DSLR Controller, Chainfire has added functionality that will allow you to control your camera via WiFi (so, no wires/cables).  For camera’s without WiFi (like my Canon 7D), they have a “how to” on their website that shows how to make the app and your camera work with a simple portable wireless router(TP-LINK TL-MR3040 wifi hub) you can purchase cheap online (around $35).  This is a fantastic feature for using your camera on a jib arm.

I often mount my 7D on a 12 foot Kessler Crane and then need to use a 25 ft. HDMI cable just to be able to see what’s happening via my field monitor; now I can actually CONTROL THE CAMERA when it’s on the 12 foot jib arm.  That means focusing, changing ISO, shutter speed, iris, start/stop filming, etc., etc.!

Not only has this app turned every tablet with OTG USB functionality into a field monitor (often with superior resolution to even higher-end dedicated field monitors!), but it also gives you remote control of your camera.

This is simply a fantastic app for still photographers and DSLR filmmakers alike.

…

P.S. Chainfire is working on another app for auto-focus micro adjust.  Here is some text from the Chainfire site about the app (currently in alpha development):

DSLR Controller AFMA

DSLR Controller AFMA is an app made to assist Auto-Focus Micro-Adjustment calibration of your lenses on your Canon EOS bodies, based on the moiré method.

It is based on the code for DSLR Controller and as such runs on the same devices and has the same connection capabilities. Of course, your camera must support Auto-Focus Micro-Adjustment for this to be useful at all.

It is currently in alpha stage. I'm releasing it in the current state because I will be out of the country for a while, and I won't be able to finish it up further before I go. The manual (http://dslrcontroller.com/afma/) seems long and daunting, but once you've used it once or twice, it really only takes a minute or so to set up.

…

Syncing Photos from Android Phone to NAS

My wife’s Moto X keeps failing to function because there is no free memory.  This is because it is so full of photos.  I have tried to show her how to back up her photos so she can safely delete them from her phone, but inevitably she forgets, the photos don’t get backed up, and she’s afraid if she deletes anything it’ll be gone forever.

Today I FINALLY had time to automate the process so she doesn’t have to remember anything and it will just happen automagically.

This process involves her Moto X, a Thecus N5550 NAS (network attached storage), and the free app FolderSync Lite. The lite version of FolderSync allows only two accounts and has no sync filters or Tasker support.  None of that is really an issue for what we’re doing here (simply backing up a single folder over WiFi via FTP).

I actually can’t believe how easy this was.  On the NAS I enabled FTP (from the NAS user interface).  Then I installed FreeSync Lite on her phone from the Google Play store.  FreeSync Lite was incredibly easy to set up, and offers some really great options for syncing.

1. In FolderSync Lite got to “Accounts.”
2. Select “add account” and then scroll down to select “FTP.”
3. Add a name for the account, and then enter your NAS’s FTP information.
4. Go back to the main menu and select “Folderpairs.”
5. Create a name for the folder pair (I used “photo back up”).
6. Select the account (choose the NAS FTP account you created in step 1).
7. Set “remote folder” by browsing to the folder on the NAS you want to use.
8. Set “local folder” as your phone’s camera storage (DCIM/Camera in my case).
9. Choose your “sync type” (I chose “to remote folder” so the process is ONLY backing up from the phone to the NAS).
10. Choose your other options from the menu (I like the “copy file names to time stamped folder” option to keep track of when things were backed up –there are also some other really nice options in this list including “use MD5 checksums”; kudos FolderSync).
11. Now just push the “sync” button from the “Folderpairs” list in FolderSync and your phone is syncing!  You can set up automatic times for the sync to happen.

Now I can set up our back up software to automate backing up these photos (further archiving) and she doesn’t have to mess with anything at all.

It works so well, I’m going to set my phone up the same way (but to sync to it’s own folder on the NAS).

I am actually so impressed with this app and all the available features, I plan on doing an in-depth review of FolderSync soon.

Fantastic.

…

Verizon Messages (app)

I will be the first to say that I HATE bloatware and carrier/manufacturer specific apps.  I rejoiced to the heavens when Android implemented the ability to disable ANY app (even if you can’t actually remove it from your device).

That said, I am thoroughly impressed with Verizon’s Messenger app (bear in mind, my very least favorite piece of bloatware is Verizon Navigator, so I definitely have no special love for Verizon apps).

When searching for a texting app for my tablet, I wanted something that would do a good job of syncing my communication on all my devices.  From my research, nothing even comes close to Verizon Messages.  Unfortunately, if Verizon is not your carrier, you can disregard the rest of this post, because the app is only for Verizon customers.

With all the other messaging apps you have to create an account and enter your phone numbers for all your devices.  Since Verizon already has all of this information, you aren’t sharing anything with yet another party.

Some apps (quite a few actually) merely link your tablet and phone via Bluetooth and/or wifi.  What good is this?  Unless your phone and tablet are ALWAYS in the same vicinity, your messages won’t be synced!

Verizon is already in charge of storing/organizing/disseminating your texts, so it should (should) stand to reason that they have the power to best sync all this information between your devices (which they are also in charge of).

Sure enough… they do!

Once you have installed Verizon Messenger on all your devices, your messages (ingoing, outgoing, SMS, and MMS) are all immediately synced.  The speed at which it happens is great (immediate).  I’m even happy with the way the interface functions/looks.  To a limited degree, you can customize the look (background color, text bubble colors, etc.).  The program also does a great job of organizing media.  For instance, I can open a text thread from any user, and if I want, Verizon Messenger will show me all the pictures sent from that person in a gallery at the bottom of the thread.  Pretty cool.

So, while I normally hate any proprietary apps (almost always bloatware), I would highly recommend Verizon Messenger to anyone on the Verizon network who needs to sync their SMS/MMS between multiple devices.

[UPDATE: 10-28-14] It’s more than a little annoying that even when you have “display message notifications in status bar” ticked in the settings, there is no notification displayed in the status bar when you have messages.  In other words, you get a text, your phone makes a sound, but there is no notification (no LED light, no icon in the header, just a number on the apps icon –so unless you’re looking at the actual app shortcut, you don’t know you’ve got a message).  So far, this is the only real gripe I have with the app.

[UPDATE: 11-04-14] Oddly enough, it seems that the problem with notification listed above happens only on my Samsung S5.  My LG Gpad 8.3 shows notifications from Verizon Messages in the notification bar at the top of the screen just like it’s supposed to, so evidently the problem is specific to my S5 (which also has major problems downloading all my e-mail from Gmail –it only downloads some of the e-mail –post on this issue coming soon).

…

MyBackup Pro: Review

I recently (finally) upgraded my phone.  I’ve had my beloved Droid Incredible since it launched (and that’s saying something), but lack of 4G and being tethered to Android 2.x finally took it’s toll, so I made the leap to a new phone (Samsung S5) and glorious Kit Kat.

Part of the process was migrating data, and I can’t say enough good things about MyBackup Pro (Android/iOS) from RerWare for this process.  I can’t imagine it being easier.  Sure you have to spend $4.99, but it was WELL WORTH IT (and I had actually already purchased the program years ago to take care of the Droid Incredible’s constant low-memory notification problem).

After installing MyBackup Pro on my new device (I did it via my computer browser and Google Play), it was literally a matter of clicking two buttons on my S5, and then two buttons on my Droid.  Awesome.

I had an older version of an application who’s features had not changed significantly in updated versions.  Furthermore the upgrades made the app ad supported (and for some odd reason there is no ad-free paid version).  Thus, I wanted to keep the older version of the app, but obviously the Play store (et al) were only offering the newest version (ad-supported and annoying).  Utilizing MyBackup Pro and the Migration feature allowed me to move the app from my old phone to my new over wifi in about 10 seconds with no issues whatsoever.  After MyBackup Pro told me the app had been moved, I opened it on my new device and it worked perfectly.  Fantastic.

You can migrate apps, media (photos, music, videos), contacts, call log, bookmarks, sms, mms, system settings, android home alarms, dictionary, calendar, music playlists, apn’s, etc.  A lot of this isn’t necessary if you’re using something like Google to sync accounts, but there are certain things that Google doesn’t address, or specialty situations (like the one mentioned above) where Google can’t help.

I’ve been using MyBackup Pro for years to archive my SMS, MMS, and call logs.  Every once in a while I’d also run a back up of my apps, especially the paid apps, just in case.

Believe it or not, there have been a couple of times where I needed to go back in time several years to check a text.  MyBackup Pro has a feature to let you load a back up without actually “restoring” it to your phone.  So I simply found the date range I was looking for, used the “view” mode to open the archive, and scrolled through until I found the text.

There is also some free cloud space with the app (if you choose to back up online instead of to an SD card or locally), and you can of course pay to upgrade the free amount of cloud space.  They also offer 100MB of additional space for for sharing and/or reviewing on Google Play, Twitter, Facebook, etc.

I don’t feel as secure with all my past SMS and MMS on yet another server “out in space,” so all my backups are local.  RerWare’s cloud service does allow you to “look into” (open up) your archives without using your phone though, so that’s cool.  If you aren’t backing up to the cloud but you want to use the web to view your archives, you can just upload a particular archive and open it that way (instead of on your phone).  I wish there were an emulator for your computer that would allow you to do the same (open archives without using your phone or the web).

I haven’t used the schedule feature, but you can schedule your phone to run automatic back ups as well.

All in all, probably the best $5 I’ve ever spent on an app.

…

Best Wifi Streaming Music Setup

This blog gets a lot of hits for people looking for the best and easiest way to stream music over wifi, so I thought I’d revisit what I’m using these days.

My goal was to get the cheapest and easiest set up, so that I can use it, my wife can use it, and guests can use it. It needed to be as easy to use and accessible as possible. I also wanted to be able to stream music to existing audio equipment that I already own. I’ve got a beautiful 1960’s Clairtone G2 that I love using (vinyl is great, but not always practical),

as well as a Carver M-400t cube with a Carver C-2 preamp running into some Magnaplanar MG-I IMP’s from the early 70’s.

Of course these systems both sound better with vinyl or CD’s running “real” audio (not compressed MP3’s), but when I’m having a party or messing around the house and don’t want to be manning the music at all times, it’s nice to be able to just let HAL DJ.

I searched and searched and searched for wifi audio streaming hardware under $50, but to no avail.   I just wanted a box to plug into my stereo that would stream music from my computer.  A used Airport Express from Ebay is definitely the way to go.  You can easily find them for around $40, and all you’re using is the audio, so you can use older versions without any trouble.  (Added bonus: with most AirPort Expresses, you could even hook up a USB printer to have WiFi printing at a central location in your home).

While I know there will be people who decry using iTunes as the main player in the set up, it’s free and while it has it’s draw-backs seems to be the easiest thing going.  Also, most other software developers allow for interfacing or at least exporting/importing data that will work with an iTunes core.

I like iTunes as the center of the system, because it makes it super easy to choose various speakers (zones) around the house.  You just go to the bottom right corner and select the speakers to which you want to stream from the drop down.  You can stream to just one or two, or all of them.  Simply select “multiple speakers” and the dialogue box below pops up.

The more speakers you stream, the longer it takes for iTunes to find them all and “get going” when you hit play (still under a few seconds with several speakers), but that’s a small price to pay for this simple solution to multiple zones.

Another huge benefit to a system with iTunes at the core is that, anyone with iTunes on their computer, an iPhone, or a compatible Android app can control the music play (if I let them), and they can even stream their own music to my system.

Obviously iPhones can work the system without a hitch, but if you’re on PC or Android, it’s still easy as pie.

For my Android device remote, I was originally using Jeff Sharkey’s TunesRemote, but he’s since stopped creating updates (not to mention you had to pair it EVERY TIME you used it, and that was a major pain in the ass).  But not to worry, as there is a dedicated community who has taken over the app (now called TunesRemote+), and they’re doing a bang up job!  The app stays paired to iTunes forever (I paired it once, and have never had to do it again), and it even works with some other programs like MediaMonkey and Songbird.  It is made to act exactly like the iTunes remote, so there are a few apps out there that might be more robust (edit playlists from remote, etc.), but this is the best and easiest free Android iTunes remote I’ve found.

You will definitely want (need) to download AirPort utility from the Apple website, as it is what will get your computer gelling with the Airports around the house.  It’s intuitive and easy to use, so you shouldn’t have any trouble getting up and running once you install and run the app and have it find all your Airports.

And those who simply refuse to use iTunes need not fret.  You can still use this setup by utilizing AirFoil ($25, both Mac and PC), which basically hi-jacks your Apple Airports and allows you to stream audio to them from anything on your computer!

Rock on.

…

myRemote Android App for Windows Media Center

I am in heaven.  I had been using gRemote to remotely controller my computer when watching media.  It basically turns your phone screen into a track pad.  There’s another screen with play, ff, rew, etc., but I honestly have no idea what good it does, as I’ve never seen it work with any program.

I just downloaded myRemote from Viclabs on the Android Market.

All you do is download the msi from the link above (it’s the server software that allows your phone to communicate with your computer), download myRemote from the Android Market, right click the myRemote icon in your tray to find your computer’s IP, and enter the IP into myRemote on your phone (make sure WiFi is enabled on your phone).

Now you have a robust, suberb remote to control Windows Media Center.  Not only are there plenty of buttons specifically for Media Center, but you can click the mouse button on the myRemote interface and use your phone screen as a track pad to control your entire computer (like gRemote).  The trackpad screen also has a text input field at the top, so you can input text.  Click your dpad or trackball to apply the text you’ve typed.  Very slick.

Probably my favorite feature of myRemote is the fact that it has volume control and a MUTE button (sort of).  If you long-press either volume button, it will jump in 15 point increments.  I no longer need my TV remote control to handle the volume.

The dedicated full screen toggle button is great.  You can also open and close WMC right from the application.  The power button will close whatever window is currently in focus, so not only can you use it to close WMC, but any open program.  In the bottom right of the main area are two buttons to toggle between a full screen view and a scrolling carousel view of all your open windows.  Very, very cool.

There are dedicated shortcut buttons to Live TV, Internet TV, Video Library, and music library.  For some reason there is no button for the Movie Library, but if you press the windows logo button it takes you to the default screen so you can scroll to the correct library.

The plus/minus buttons function as skip forward/skip back during movie playback. The FF/RW buttons at the very bottom to the same, but in greater increments.

I have no idea what the camera icon button does, so someone please tell me (it’s driving me crazy).

I run Hulu and Netflix via WMC.  I’ve also found that you actually don’t have to run Hulu from Media Center to control it with the dedicated myRemote keypad.  For Hulu, use the center arrow keys.  Ok is play/pause, left and right are fwd/rev.  The dedicated FF key at the bottom left functions as a full screen toggle for Hulu.

For added fun-ness: you can run the server over 3G instead of WiFi. Forward port 9876 (UDP) to your PC and then use your router’s IP address (from your ISP) in your myRemote app.

…

Best Way to Stream Audio Via WiFi

UPDATE: The information for "best streaming audio wifi setup" has been updated at my new post here.

I’ve been searching for the perfect wireless home audio set up for years.  I’ve got a beautiful Clairtone G2 in my swank 50’s living room that I use for my audio listening pleasure.  It’s not the most practical thing for setting up all your audio/video needs, but it’s so damn pretty, and goes so well with the rest of my midcentury modern furnishings that there is no getting around the fact that I have to make it work with my audio setup.
I started out years ago using a Creative Labs WiFi system.  I think it was actually called “Creative Sound Blaster Wireless Music.”  Sound Blaster of course went on to become a more generic term for Creative Labs computer audio cards (actually, I think this was the case even then, and it made the name of the unit incredibly confusing).  This was early wifi audio streaming.  When it worked, it was pretty cool.  The fact that the system had a remote that actually showed the name of the song playing, and songs in your library, and even playlists made the device years ahead of any other similar system, but it was S-L-O-W.  If you had any sort of decent music library (more than 200 songs), it was painful to scroll through your tunes.  Playlists were difficult to compile, and the server software crashed all the time.  Other than that it was grand!
For some reason, no one has created a similar unit at a decent price since this unit was made available around 2004.  The closest thing seems to be the SqueezeBox Duet, but it’s around $400 —which is WAY too pricey when you’re just trying to get audio to your old stereo.
There are some decent units under $150, but almost all of them have speakers incorporated into the unit.  I just wanted a good wifi box to plug into my stereo via RCA plugs.  Why does no one make this?!
I’ve finally found something that works for me, and it just goes to show: if you wait long enough, technology catches up and people make enough things that are “almost right,” so you can cobble together exactly what you need at the price you want.
I finally ended up just buying an old Airport Express off of eBay for $45 (they list for $99) and using it only to stream audio.  Because it’s only for audio, you can use G or even B wifi, so don’t waste your money on a faster N unit.
When I received my Airport Express, I plugged it into the power strip and ran a 1/8” to RCA cable from the unit to my stereo.  I downloaded the Airport Utility from Apple.com and followed easy steps that connected the Airport Express to my existing home network (selecting the options to use the Airport Express only for audio streaming). It was super easy, and I had music streaming to my G2 literally minutes after opening the Airport Express box.
I was happy to see that I can switch speakers from the iTunes interface (I am able to select one or more), and thus the music playing in my office is in perfect sync with the music playing in my living room.  You can even control the volume of each independently, so I can make the music louder in the living room, and quieter in the office.  Currently I have the audio in my office turned off so I can watch Hulu, but iTunes is still streaming to the living room.  I will likely add another Airport Express in the future so that I can stream music to my patio as well.
I use Jeff Sharkey’s TunesRemote for a remote control, which allows me to access my entire library and all my playlists from my phone.  HOW TO: Install the app on your phone (download from Android market), let it scan for your iTunes, click on the correct computer/network on your phone, the app will pop-up a four digit code, your device should appear in your iTunes window (same window in which your Playlists, etc. are displayed), click on your device in iTunes and enter the four digit code.  I’m listing all that, because I had trouble setting this up at first.
If you don’t like using iTunes, Rogue Amoeba makes a program called Airfoil that allows you to stream any audio to your Airport Express.  Basically Airfoil hijacks the audio from any program on your computer and then sends it to your Airport Express.  You can even send to multiple Airport Express devices (like you would with iTunes).  Don’t get all excited thinking that this will work with audio for your internet video though.  It will be out of sync, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it (see this post).
So… I’ve got audio streaming to my G2, I’ve got a remote to control it, and I’m a happy, happy boy!
…

[UPDATE] I updated iTunes (always a big mistake) to 10.1 and can no longer connect to the Airport Express from iTunes.  Airfoil connects to the Airport without issue.  Don’t you just love it when a third party does a better job than the manufacturer? :eye roll:

[UPDATE] The issue above was completely firewall related.  Make sure you have an exception for Airport (not just iTunes).  I found that setting “protocol” to TCP (not UDP) made things work best. I should probably figure out what the hell that means.

best / cheapest / most inexpensive way to stream audio

wifi with vintage audio

The Missing Sync for Android (a software review)

[see updates at the end of this post]

The nice people over at Markspace.com sent me a copy of The Missing Sync for evaluation.  I have to admit I wouldn’t have tried out the software at the fairly steep MSR of $39.95, and I think that sentiment is loudly reflected by the people on various message boards and the Android Market comment space.  However, after just a few moments using the program, I think it’s probably worth the cash… even if you’re only after it’s music syncing functionality.  The Missing Sync also has me constantly asking myself: “How have Google and HTC so thoroughly ignored the need for music syncing and a back up program for their devices?!”.

One of the first steps in the super-simple install process of setting up The Missing Sync states: “On your phone, follow the steps on the ‘Get Ready To Pair’ screen.”  However, they don’t tell you how to get to this screen.  It’s pretty simple (click your device’s “menu” button and select “pairing”), but it still might cause some people to stall, so I thought I’d make mention of the omission.

Music Sync: [kudos] [update: meh] For this to be a great function, the Missing Sync would need to convert your .xml or .asx playlists to .m3u (which is the only playlist Droid can use).  Currently, Missing Sync simply transfers your iTunes or WMP playlists to your device, where they are completely unreadable as they are in the wrong format.  So while Missing Sync does transfer your files, you won’t be able to see/read your playlists, only the songs.

Here is where The Missing Sync for Android shines.  Note that if you’ve got a big library it’ll take a couple of seconds for The Missing Sync to find and interpret all the information (this is of course to be expected).  Once The Missing Sync found all my files… I was in heaven.  It was a simple matter of selecting the playlists I wanted synced and that was it!  One of the creators of The Missing Sync let me know that he creates a smart list called “top 25 songs” so whenever he syncs his device it automatically updates his phone with whatever he’s been listening to the most.

Another cool thing is that in The Missing Sync, your playlists from all your media programs come up.  So my WMP lists appear with a WMP icon, and my iTunes lists are shown with an iTunes icon.  It’s very nice that I can sync playlists from both programs to my device (I no longer have to sync my WMP and iTunes libraries to each other).

At first I thought music could only be synced via USB, but you can also sync wirelessly.  Another nice feature.

Proximity Sync: [kudos] You can set up The Missing Sync to sync wirelessly at whatever intervals you might like (from never, 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, 8 hours, every day).  Kind of nice to not have to plug in or even remember to sync.

Contact Sync: [fail]  Evidently you must have Outlook installed for this to work.  There is no mention of this in the “Syncing Contacts” section of their website (I don’t know if they just expect you to have Outlook, or if they’re glossing over the fact that their software won’t work without this awful Microsoft program).  This is especially weird because in the “Syncing Notes” section they make it perfectly clear that you need “Fliq Notes” (free) installed before the sync will work.  So obviously the need for Outlook is a major shortcoming.  I don’t want to install Outlook.  More importantly, I don’t want to PAY FOR a subpar e-mail/contact program.  Microsoft has enough of my money, and there are PLENTY of (superior) programs out there for e-mail and managing contacts.  Why in the hell would I want Outlook?  It seems odd that The Missing Sync couldn’t just sync to a .cvs file or something so you could back up your contacts without having to pay for Microsoft Outlook.  This isn’t really that big a deal, as my contacts are all synced to my Gmail account, but it is a giant “fail” for The Missing Sync.

Notes: [meh] You have to have Fliq Notes installed for this to work.  I probably won’t install another program just for notes.  Some people might use notes enough to warrant installing another third party app.  I don’t.

Folder Sync: [kudos] A very nice feature for syncing any selected file or folder to/from your PC/Device.  Simply select the folder and you’re golden.

Photos: [kudos/pending] [update: fail] At the time of writing this post, I cannot yet get photos to sync.  I assume I have something set up wrong, as my SMS and Call Logs won’t sync either (see “Gold Service” section below).  I’m going to go ahead and post about the features I can see in the Photo Sync panel anyway, assuming I’ll be able to get things working once I figure out why my device isn’t showing up with a couple of the services.

So…  I like that I can not only import from the device, but export to the device as well (so I can take pics from my computer with me to share with people).  There’s even a “resize to device’s longest edge” option to save on size.  And like with music, it’s as simple as selecting (ticking the box of) the album or photo I want to transfer.  There are options for “import all items, including previously imported items” and “remove items from device after importing.”  It is however incredibly annoying that the window where you can select which photos to sync is only four folders high and there is NO WAY to resize the window.  Sorting through THOUSANDS of photos when you can only see four is way beyond ridiculous.

Videos: [pending] I haven’t checked out this feature yet, but evidently you can set this up to simply sync a file to your device, or use the program to actually convert files to device friendly format.

Install: [kudos] This is a feature that allows you to set up associations between file extensions and directories.  For example, you can set “doc” files to always be installed in your My Documents directory. I’m not sure how this will affect installs of programs with ReadMe files, etc.

Ringtones: [kudos] There’s a nice little Ringtone Creator incorporated into The Missing Sync that allows you to chop up songs for ringtones.  I wish this extended to device notification sounds (not just ringtones), but I think this may be a shortcoming of the device/OS, not The Missing Sync, as I can’t seem to easily change the device notification sounds even from within my Droid.

Gold Service Option: [pending] MarkSpace’s “gold” customer service came with my install of The Missing Sync.  Since I couldn’t figure out how to get my Phone Log, SMS Messages, and Photos to sync (The Missing Sync kept telling me a device had not yet been synced with the program even though I was successfully syncing music?), I used the opportunity to contact the peeps at customer service.  Supposedly they’ll respond in four hours or less.  It is currently 1:21pm Mountain Time on a Wednesday.  This “gold” service also comes with a pin number for instant online chat.  I’m gonna wait a bit to check that out though.

The one thing that every backup/sync program should do, and The Missing Sync doesn’t, is provide a button that will back up my entire device (for simple restoration in the event of complete device failure).  On this front, The Missing Sync fails (no “one click back up all” option).

[update 5/27/10] No response yesterday.  I did receive a response this morning requesting that I send in my error log.  I did so at 10:53am and have not heard anything back.  It’s 6:29pm.

[update 5/28/10] I got a response this morning that was basically “try again with your virus protection off.”  I did so, and SMS and Call Logs are now being backed up.  However, only numbers are listed, not names.  A long list of 10 digit numbers is pretty useless to me.  Unless the back up can figure out someway to pull in my contact name/number associations, SMS and Call Log back up is going to be a “fail.”  Also, Photo backup and/or sync is not functioning, so unless I get a fix from tech support, photo sync will also be a “fail.”

[update 5/29/10] Still no response regarding the fact that photos won’t back up or sync, and that SMS and Call Logs won’t display names (only numbers).  To be fair, it is Saturday, but I expected a response to the issue yesterday and did not receive one.

[update 8/10/10] After the holiday weekend the folks at MissingSync got back to me and were actually quite excellent with their communication.  However, in the end I’m still pretty disappointed with the Missing Sync.  There is no “total device backup,” you can’t sync via USB (only WiFi or Bluetooth, which is much too slow when syncing your entire music library), the photo sync does not work (in either direction), and the music sync would need to convert playlists to the correct Android playlist format (.m3u) for the software to be truly useful.  The people at Missing Sync turned out to be great, but the software falls short, especially for the price.

In my opinion, the best option right now for syncing music and other media is called doubleTwist.  See my review here.

…

Ginipic kind of rules. (image searching)

I heard about Ginipic the other day from Lifehacker. After reading some of the reader comments, I decided to try the Firefox CoolIris add-on first (rather than install a dedicated program on my machine, just for searching pictures).

It's OK, I suppose. The interface is fun (tilt and scroll), but not very useful... in fact, it just got annoying after a while. It's not very intuitive. I'm still not sure how to effectively interact with the interface. Clicking on an image enlarges it. Or maybe it takes you to the image location? Or maybe it doesn't. And how do you get back to your original search? Yada, yada, yada. Needless to say, I got fed up with it very quickly.

So I decided to try Ginipic. It was a super quick and easy install and then... can you say "awesome" boys and girls?


If you spend any time at all searching Flickr, Google, etc... for images, I highly recommend trying this program out. I am definitely a fan.

...