OsX 1.8 Mountain Lion ... What you may have not been prepared for ...

Bad Kitty

Ubuntu Media Server ... whats next?

    If you have been following my blog, then you already know that I use Ubuntu 11.10 and the Plex media server software as a "Media Center PC". The Ubuntu PC also functions as file server and has two 500GB partitions for Time Machine Backup from my two Mac's. I have also managed to get Netatalk 2.2.2 and Avahi to play nice with the default Samba file sharing software. I wanted to keep Samba available for when friends with Microsoft Windows laptop's came to visit.

    So far, this setup has been working out much better than expected. The server (which is really just plain Jane Ubuntu 11.10 for desktops) is more stable than I could have hoped for and everything integrates well enough into my network that even my "non-techie" wife can use it regularly from her Mac or from the Roku without any trouble. The real question is, where do I go from here?

Lilyhammer ... Sopranos in winter

    Lilyhammer is a new series created by Netflix. I was less than three minutes into the first episode when my wife asked me if I was watching The Sopranos, and she wasn't far off. 



The official descriptions is:
    "After he testifies against a Mafia boss, ex-gangster Frank Tagliano enters the witness protection program and asks to be sent to Norway. Despite the peaceful surroundings, it's not long before Frank strays from the straight and narrow."

 The role of "Frank Tagliano" is played by veteran actor Steven Van Zandt. This show is very well produced and has a solid cast of characters. All I really say is wow! I am defiantly hooked.

    Netflix decided to release the show without any fanfare what-so-ever. It didn't even show up in the list as a new TV show; I had to search for it after hearing about it at work. It makes me wonder if this was an intentional marketing move, or simply a test of "word-of-mouth" advertising? Whatever the case, I am now a bigger fan of Netflix than ever was. If they can keep producing top quality original programming on this level, I will be customer for life.

    The entire first season now available on Netflix for streaming, and if you ever watched any "mobster" types shows or movies, you have to see Lilyhammer.

USB Video, Fact or Fiction?

    In my last post I wrote about ordering myself a USB Video Display Adapter. Well, as it happens, it has arrived and I have taken the plunge and opened the box. In the next few paragraphs I will attempt to go over both the pro's and the con's of such a device.